Everything Changes
by Hotflash
Summary: Sequel to When Times Are Tough *not nec. to read 1st* With Roy back at work things have started to return to normal for the guys of 51, or have they? Johnny finds himself challenged like never before and Mike Stoker speaks... a LOT!
1. Chapter 1

**Everything Changes**

*This story begins where "When Times Are Tough" left off, but it is not necessary to read the other one first.

**Chapter One**

The slight breeze that came in through the screened window gently tickled her nose, waking her from a very restful night's sleep. Instinctively, she rubbed her face to make the tickle go away and then slowly opened her eyes. She looked at the clock… 6:55 in the morning. The alarm would go off in five minutes. Sharon Walter closed her eyes again to make the most of those five minutes. She lay there dreaming about a certain handsome paramedic who was coming to take her to breakfast this morning.

Johnny Gage been relentless since he first laid eyes on Sharon, asking her every time he saw her if she would go out on a date with him. For weeks she resisted his charms, but one day he came in to Rampart Hospital Emergency Room with that crooked smile of his, fresh from a structure fire, on the way home at the end of his shift. He looked a mess with soot across his nose and cheek but he flashed his big brown eyes at her with his signature, crooked smile and asked her for at least the hundredth time if she would please just _consider_ going out with him one time. Here he was, looking a total mess and smelling of smoke, yet he was still persistent enough to ask her yet again to go out with him. Realizing he would never stop asking, she finally gave in.

Not being one to rush into things, Sharon had only allowed Johnny to take her out twice more since that first date. She allowed him to take her to breakfast on their second date. For their third date she agreed to see a movie, but she brought her bosses (and good friends) Dixie McCall and Kel Brackett along as chaperones! She wanted to get to know each other slowly and have time to develop a friendship before rushing into anything more serious. She'd heard from the other nurses that it wasn't how Johnny usually operated, but _she_ hadn't chased _him_, he'd pursued _her_. If he wanted more than casual friendship he'd have to play by _her_ rules. So far, he was.

Sharon was just 21 and Johnny was 27, but the two found that they had a lot in common. Both enjoyed the outdoors, both loved horses, they liked a lot of the same music, and of course, both had chosen professions involving helping others. The more time Sharon spent with Johnny the more time she _wanted_ to spend with him.

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP The alarm was going off, causing her vision of her handsome paramedic to fade away as she opened her eyes. "I had better get myself moving." she said out loud to herself. She sat up and dropped her legs over the side of the bed, her feet touching the cool, hardwood floor of her bedroom. She arched her back in a slow stretch, tilting her head back and then sat straight a moment before standing up. Quickly but neatly she made her bed then headed off to the kitchen to start the coffee.

While the coffee was percolating, Sharon headed back to her room to decide just what she should wear for the morning. After much indecision she finally picked out a cream colored short- sleeved sweater and a pair of blue jeans. Nothing too fancy, but definitely comfortable. She set her outfit on the bed, along with her unmentionables and then chose a pair of shoes to wear and set them on the floor near the foot of the bed.

After she had her first cup of coffee she headed off to shower and "put on her face." By the time she had dressed and started her second cup of coffee, it was 8:15. She thought she had done pretty well for herself, ready with 15 minutes to spare. Just then her doorbell rang. Sharon almost ran to the door, being careful to look through the peephole before she opened the door to one of the handsomest most eligible bachelors she had ever seen.

"Good morning, Johnny!" Sharon was cheerful. She was looking forward to spending the day with him.

"Good morning. You look great!" Johnny answered with enthusiasm.

"Thank you," said Sharon, blushing. "You look good too." Johnny was wearing black jeans with a long-sleeved white dress shirt with the top few buttons opened, showing a hint of his tanned, firm chest. Sharon liked what she saw and blushed even more when she thought he noticed her eyeing him a bit too long.

"These are for you," Johnny said, holding out a small bouquet of wildflowers. "I… thought you might… like them." He stammered with a grin. _Was she really checking him out?_

"Oh, aren't you sweet? They are beautiful." Sharon smiled back and thanked him. She took them from him and invited him inside while she looked for something to put them in.

_Progress! She hasn't invited me in before_. Johnny stepped into the living room and closed the door behind him. "Great apartment. The natural light coming in is fantastic," he complimented.

"The more natural daylight the better," she said. "Would you like a cup of coffee or do you just want to go?" she asked. The flowers were now in a tall glass of water on her kitchen counter.

"That's up to you," he answered. "What do you want to do?"

"Are you very hungry?" she asked.

"Starved," admitted the fireman.

"Me too, let's go!" Sharon laughed and reached for her purse. After she locked the door Johnny held out his arm for her to take hold of and he walked her to his car.

Always the gentleman, Johnny opened the door for her to get in and closed it when she was properly situated. Then he quickly walked around to the driver's side and got in.

"Where are we going this time?" asked Sharon.

"Any preferences?" Johnny asked, looking into her beautiful green eyes.

"Not really," she answered. "I was just curious."

Johnny nodded his head once. Then a very thoughtful look came over his face. "Sharon, how would you like a picnic brunch instead of going to a restaurant?"

"Sure!" she answered enthusiastically. "I'm game for anything."

Johnny raised an eyebrow and said, "Oh yeah?"

Sharon blushed in response. "Johnny, you are incorrigible!"

"So I have been told!" he answered with a slightly naughty grin.

"Johnny," Sharon quickly changed gears. "Why don't we invite Roy and his wife to join us? I bet they'd like a picnic."

"They have kids." Johnny answered.

"I like kids," she argued back. "Besides, kids get hungry too!"

"You're right, they do," he said. "I can't argue with that!" Johnny grinned and shook his head. _This chick is tough to break! _Johnny drove into a grocery store parking lot and found a pay phone. He got out and slipped a dime into the slot before dialing his partner's phone number_. I sure hope Joanne answers._

"DeSoto residence, Joanne speaking." Joanne had picked up on the first ring.

"Joanne? It's me, Johnny."

"Oh, hi Johnny. Why are you cal… Is Roy alright?" Joanne was worried. It was past the time Roy usually got home from his shift and now Johnny was calling her. "He hasn't been…"

"Relax!" Johnny interrupted the somewhat panicked wife of his best friend. "Roy is fine. At least he was when we left the station a while ago. He's not home yet?" It was Johnny's turn to be concerned.

"No, he usually home by 8:30, 9:00 at the latest unless he calls to say he'll be late. I haven't heard… Oh… Wait… He's just pulling up now. He had me positively worried!"

"I'm sure he has a good excuse, Joanne. He probably stopped to get some breakfast or something." Johnny was almost as relieved as Joanne.

"Yean, I guess so," she answered. "Why _were_ you calling, Johnny?"

"Oh, yeah. Ah, a friend and I thought we would drive up to the mountains and have a picnic brunch and we thought that maybe… well… maybe you and Roy and the kids would like to come along."

"Oh Johnny, how thoughtful of you! I am sure the kids would love to spend their day with their Uncle Johnny and I know I would enjoy getting away from this house for a while. This friend of yours wouldn't happen to be a certain red headed nurse from Rampart Emergency would she?"

Johnny's crooked smile took over his face as he answered sheepishly, "Well, yes. Yes Sharon is the friend that is going with me."

"Good, I have been wanting to meet her!" Joanne stated. "What can we bring and where shall we meet? We can all fit in the station wagon if you want, but you'd probably prefer we go in two cars I would think."

"Bring what ever sounds good. I'm going to stop and pick up juice, fruit, cheese and croissants. I guess we could all fit in the station wagon, but the Rover does better on the mountain roads. I think it would be better if I drove the Rover and you and Roy brought the truck. How 'bout if we meet at your place and then the kids can ride in the Rover?"

"Great! I'll start getting everyone ready! Thanks for the invitation."

"Any time! See you soon."

John was happy that he had gotten Joanne and not Roy on the phone. Roy would have declined citing his infamous honey-do list, but Jo didn't get out enough.

Johnny returned to the Rover to see large green inquisitive eyes looking out from a beautiful face, waiting for an answer from him. "We'll have to go pick them up," he said. The kids will ride with us." The smile on Sharon's face made it worth it.

**Please leave me a review. Tell me what you think, what you like, what you would like to read or whatever else you are willing to share. Thanks! -Hotflash**


	2. Chapter 2

*This chapter is not an action chapter. It isn't all that exciting, it's just friends getting to know each other. My style is more about relationships than it is action and I felt it was important to the rest of the story so please bear with me. And I know I said Mike would be prominent in this story, but… all in good time! I hope you enjoy this. Everything Changes Chapter 2

Roy walked in on the end of Joanne's phone call. "Ready for what?" He said softly in her ear as he wrapped his arms around her from behind. The soft musk scent of her perfume brought a naughty thought or two to his mind.

"We're going on a picnic brunch with Johnny and his new nurse friend." Joanne answered in a matter of fact way.

"But Joanne," Roy started to protest. "I have a whole list of things you…"

"Forget the list. It can wait, Darling." Joanne said turning to face her husband. "I want to spend some quality time with you and you _know _the kids are gonna love it. They adore their Uncle Johnny and his adventures."

"Okay," Roy gave in. "Just remember this was your idea."

"No, Honey. _You_ remember so you can thank me for it later. Now help me out. I have to find something to bring. Why don't you get Chris and Katie ready to go… do you mind?"

"Alright. Let's do this."

"Thank you, Roy. You're the greatest!"

"You're welcome," Roy answered as he headed down the hall to find his kids.

Joanne went to the refrigerator to see what she might contribute to the brunch. She pulled out a chicken curry salad that she had made the day before. She was planning to have it for lunch today anyway. "Hmm… this should go well with the croissants." She said aloud, to no one. "Terrific! Champagne and it's already chilled."

Johnny had just walked Sharon in as Joanne stepped back into the living room. "Johnny, good to see you!" Joanne planted a kiss on his cheek to punctuate her sentence. Turning to Sharon she held out her hand. "You must be Sharon. I've heard so much about you. My name is Joanne."

"Hi Joanne." Sharon smiled shyly. "I hope it was mostly good stuff you heard."

"What else is there?" asked Roy as he joined them. He winked at Sharon. Sharon blushed a little at the compliment. Even though she saw Roy and Johnny at work on a regular basis, she felt very shy around them out of that setting. She was getting used to Johnny, but this was the first time she had seen Roy away from work.

Sensing Sharon's discomfort Joanne created a distraction. "Christopher, Katherine, let's go please," she shouted towards their rooms. Turning back to Johnny she said, "Do you have a cooler? I have a few things to contribute."

"Ah Roy," Johnny looked at his partner. "Do you have one? I haven't been home. Oh, better grab a couple of blankets too"

"Yeah, I do, Johnny," he answered as he rolled his eyes. "It's in the garage. I'll go get it while you guys get situated. As he stepped outside to the garage the children came running out.

"Uncle Johnny!" shouted Chris as he ran up to his Uncle, practically knocking him down with his hug. Seeing Sharon in the living room, five-year-old Katie got an attack of the shy bug and hid behind her mother.

"Be careful Christopher DeSoto. One day you're going to hurt someone doing that!" scolded Joanne.

"Hey Chris! How are you doing my man?" Johnny peeled the boy off of himself. "Are you ready for some fun?

"You know it!" Chris answered.

"Great! Go hop in the Rover and be sure and buckle your seatbelt. Oh, and Chris, this is my friend Miss Walter. She's gonna come with us today."

"Hi Miss Walter, I'm Christopher DeSoto but most people just call me Chris."

Sharon smiled at the young boy. "Well Chris, that sounds good. You can call me Sharon. Miss Walter makes me sound old!"

"Okay, Miss Sharon," said Chris. His parents didn't allow him to address an adult with out a title. "It's very nice to meet you." With that exchange Chris ran out the door to hop in the Rover.

"Where's my favorite niece?" asked Johnny.

"She is glued to the back of my leg!" Joanne laughed, reaching around to loosen Katie's grip. "It's okay, Katie honey. Daddy and Uncle Johnny know Miss Sharon from work. She's a nurse at the hospital." Katie eyed Sharon from the safety of her mother's leg.

"Hi Katie. How old are you?" asked Sharon.

"I'm five years old and I'm in 'kindergarden,'" she said, mispronouncing the word.

"Wow, that sounds fun!" Sharon responded in an enthusiastic voice. "How would you like to ride with your Uncle Johnny and me for our adventure and you can tell me all about it on the way?"

"Well…"

"It's okay, Katie, go ahead," encouraged her mother. "Chris is going with you too."

"Okay." Katie agreed though she still felt a little shy. She usually grew out of that in a hurry and Joanne knew this would be no exception. Sharon held out her hand to Katie who hesitantly took it. The two walked out to the Rover to get ready to leave.

"Do you have everything Jo?" asked Johnny.

"Yeah, let me get my purse and make sure Roy doesn't need anything. Oh, and Johnny… she's _swee_t. I like her."

Johnny's grin lit up his face. "She _is_ cute." He said. "I just hope she'll relax a little sometime soon."

"Give her time, Johnny. She'll come around. How could she resist the famous Gage charm?" Roy remarked, punching his partner lightly in the arm. He had just returned with the ice chest and blankets and was making sure everyone was ready to go.

Finally, the six adventurers hit the road. It would take about an hour and a half to reach Frazier Mountain Park once they left town. It was located in the Los Padres National Forest about 90 miles northwest of Carson. Since Johnny had to stop at the store on the way out of town, and Katie needed a rest stop on the way, the group arrived at their destination in just over two hours. It was just a little past noon.

As soon as the Rover was stopped Katie and Chris bolted from the vehicle. Both needed to stretch their legs and run! "Hey you two," shouted Roy. "Don't go where we can't see you. Be listening for us to call you as soon as lunch is ready." He knew they heard him but they didn't answer him… they were having too much fun chasing each other through the trees and laughing.

Roy and Johnny got the cooler out and spread the blankets on the ground in a partially shaded spot. They brought the cooler over and set it between the blankets on the ground. "Thanks you two," said Joanne. Why don't you guys go keep an eye on the kids and Sharon and I will get lunch set out."

"Sure, why not?" answered Johnny. He headed over to join in the chase with the kids, Roy was right behind him.

"How long have you been seeing Johnny, Sharon?" Asked Joanne.

"Not long. This is our fourth official date, if you can call it that."

"Why wouldn't you call it a date? Having others with you doesn't mean it isn't a date."

"Well, I guess that's true," said Sharon. Joanne could sense Sharon was hesitant about the whole situation.

"Is something wrong?" she asked.

"No, not really. It's just, well… I'm a little worried about… you know, I mean, you must know Johnny's reputation." Sharon started to say what she really felt, but she was not sure that she should.

"Sharon, I have known Johnny for quite a while now. He's my husband's partner and best friend. What's more, he has become part of our family, kind of like a kid brother to me. I know he has somewhat of a reputation, but really, he's a pussycat." Joanne tried to ease Sharon's concern.

"Really? Cause he sure seems like a skirt chaser, and that is exactly what I don't need," Sharon admitted. I dated enough of those back when I was pom-pom girl."

Joanne smiled at that little admission of Sharon's past. "Well, he _does_ like the ladies, and given the opportunity, I am sure he would have a little fun, if you get my drift. But I don't believe he would ever pressure anyone to do anything they didn't want to. He would be more likely to follow your lead. If he weren't interested in you as a whole person, he wouldn't have asked you out to begin with. He's really not into shallow relationships."

Sharon smiled. Joanne was so sweet. Sharon really liked her. "Thanks Joanne. That does make me feel a little better. Let me ask you one thing though."

"Anything… ask away."

"Do you think Johnny's too old for me?"

"What do you mean? You are _legal_ aren't you?" Joanne stifled a laugh.

Sharon's laugh popped right out. "Yes, I'm 21." Then as an after thought she added, "And a half!"

Joanne couldn't help but laugh out loud. "Well, Johnny is only 27. That isn't too bad, and he's a kid at heart. Just look at him!" Joanne pointed to where the kids and men were chasing each other in the trees. Johnny and Roy _did_ look like a couple of overgrown boys.

"Johnny," shouted Sharon. "Roy, Katie, Chris, lunch is ready!" The ladies finished their talk as the others headed towards them. "I really appreciate what you told me, Joanne. Please don't say anything. I'm kind of… well… shy."

"Get over it!" Joanne laughed, pushing her on the arm.

Soon all of them enjoyed a picnic lunch of chicken curry salad, croissants, cheese, cherries, grapes and chips that Johnny had grabbed at the store just for the kids. He gave them frosted animal cookies for dessert. The adults sipped champagne while the kids enjoyed root beer. After lunch, the ladies watched the kids play for a bit while the men cleaned up and then they all set out for a hike.

They had hiked a couple of miles and seen some beautiful views, lots of wildflowers and enjoyed seeing squirrels, chipmonks, a myriad of birds and even a doe and fawn. It was in the low 90's out, but luckily the trail was mostly shaded. Unfortunately, 5 year-olds start to get tired more easily than grown ups on a hike. Perhaps it is because they get so excited and keep running ahead, then back. In any case, Katie was no exception and as she got hotter and more tired, she began to get whiny.

"Mom-my, aren't we done yet?" she asked for about the 15th time. Joanne gave her husband one of those, 'what do you want me to do?' looks.

"Annie, I can walk her back down. You go on and have a good time." Roy offered.

"Honey, that's a great offer, but I wanted to do this to spend time with _you_. Maybe Johnny and Sharon would take Chris and both of us could walk her down."

"That's an idea. Let's see how Chris feels about it first," he answered. Calling up the trail a bit to Johnny who was in the lead he said, "Hey, Johnny! How 'bout a little break?"

"Sure, okay," Johnny called back. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah. We have a tired 5-year-old is all," Roy answered.

"Oh, okay. Well, let's rest a bit."

"Johnny, Roy and I were wondering if you'd mind taking Chris and we would walk Katie back down to the car. That way she can get a rest and the rest of you can still have a good time. That is…" she said turning to her son, "…if _you_ don't mind, Chris."

"It's okay with me," said Chris. "Uncle Johnny?"

"Sure. Fine. If it's okay with your folks it's okay with me."

"Well, alright then. It's settled. You guys take your time, it's only around 3:15. Why don't we plan on leaving around say… 6:30? We can snack on left-overs and pick up some burgers on the way home. My treat. How's that sound?" Roy suggested.

"Great." Answered Johnny. "Is that okay with you?" he asked Sharon.

"Sure, sounds good." She answered.

The three continued their hike and Roy lifted Katie up to his shoulders and packed her down the trail, holding hands with is lovely wife.

About twenty minutes later, Chris, Johnny and Sharon had stopped near a patch of huckleberries in a natural clearing. "Sshh!" Johnny whispered, pointing to an area in the middle of the huckleberries. "There's a bear." The bear was eating huckleberries and didn't seem to notice the three hikers. Johnny noticed Sharon's face went pale at the mention of the word "bear." He took her hand in his and with his other hand turned her face so they would see each other eye to eye. Still whispering he said, "Don't worry. We're not gonna bother her and she's not gonna bother us. We'll just watch quietly for a few minutes and then I think we should head back, at a leisurely pace."

Sharon only nodded. She wasn't too sure about this. Chris was totally entranced. Sharon didn't even notice when Johnny put his arms around her from behind. He wanted her to feel safe. He hugged her gently and she didn't resist. She felt good in his arms. He wished he could keep her there for hours. He wasn't making a move on her intentionally, but he was glad she hadn't resisted his embrace.

About ten minutes went by and then the bear slowly worked her way back into the trees, away from the spectators. Suddenly Sharon realized she was in Johnny's arms. It actually felt nice to be there. She felt very safe. Being the shy young lady she was, she blushed a little at the realization. "Shall we go now?" she asked softly.

"I think we should," he said. "What do you think, Sport?"

"Chris was so excited about telling his dad all about seeing the bear that he gave no objections.

Johnny released his embrace, but kept hold of Sharon's hand and started the hike back to the car. Sharon didn't make any movement to take her hand back. _Progress at last!_ _That's two for Johnny Gage!_

***Please leave me a review. It helps motivate me to write and I appreciate it very much! Thanks. **

**- Hotflash**


	3. Chapter 3

Everything Changes Chapter 3

Neither Johnny nor Sharon drew attention to the fact that they were still holding hands as they hiked down the mountain trail. It was almost like both were pretending that they were not. Johnny wondered what Sharon was thinking. He wasn't used to dating shy chicks. Sharon liked the feel of Johnny's hand in hers. It felt comfortable and warm.

The trail wasn't too difficult, but at times the fact that they were holding hands kept her from stumbling in the rougher spots. In those moments Johnny's grip would tighten but always in a gentle way. She appreciated the chivalry.

Chris kept running up ahead of them and stopping. He would stand very quietly and survey the woods on either side of him, looking, hoping for the chance to see more big game wildlife while he waited for Uncle Johnny and Miss Sharon to catch up. The bear they had watched had been so beautiful and so exciting. He could hardly wait to talk to his parents about it. Uncle Johnny and his friend were hiking _so_ slowly, he thought. As the two adults started to get closer, Chris took off ahead of them again.

"Please be careful, Chris. You could fall and get hurt," Sharon shouted ahead as they began hiking a rougher part of the trail about two thirds of the way down from where they had turned back.

"Don't worry!" Chris shouted back. No sooner had the words come out of his mouth than he stepped on a rock that rolled out from under his foot. "Whoooaaaa!" Chris yelled. Chris's left foot shot ahead of him while his right foot slid out from behind him so that he nearly did the splits as he hit the hard dirt and rocks. His right knee hit the ground hard and then he landed on his backside, mostly on the left hip and fell over onto his left arm, scraping up his elbow in the process. When he stopped moving from the fall he was on top of his left arm and the left side of his face was planted in the dirt.

"Chris!" Johnny and Sharon shouted at the same time.

Paramedic mode took over as Johnny let go of Sharon's hand and ran towards the boy while at the same time he was sliding his backpack off of his shoulders. Sharon was only a step or two behind him when Johnny reached Chris. At first Chris didn't move at all. Everything had happened in just a few seconds but it felt like minutes to the three of them. Johnny tossed the backpack at Sharon as he knelt down beside Chris on one knee with his other foot extended outward, down hill a bit for stability.

"Chris, are you okay?" he asked the boy as he started triage. "Where do you hurt?" He looked and felt for injuries, covering from head to toe as he and Chris spoke to each other. Sharon was digging in to the pack to find first aid supplies that she knew would be there.

"My arm really hurts! And my knee hurts too!" Chris informed Johnny through gritted teeth. He was in a lot of pain but he was determined not to cry. Crying was for sissies!

"Now don't you worry, Chris. I'm gonna check you out and we'll get you fixed up. You just take it easy now, okay?" He started explaining, trying to make sure Chris stayed calm. His left arm had some pretty bad "trail-rash" and was at a funny angle when he gently repositioned his young patient. "The arm looks broken," he said. The right knee was very swollen already and Johnny suspected it too was broken if not badly sprained. Looking up at Sharon, who had first aid supplies laid out on top of a plastic sack from inside of the backpack, he directed her. "Be careful when you clean that arm up, it's broken. I'm gonna go find something to splint his arm and leg with." Looking Chris in the eye he said, "Sport, I know you're in a lot of pain right now. I won't think any less of you or think you're a sissy if you cry. I've seen _grown ups_ cry when _they_ get hurt. I don't have any way to ease your pain right now, but Sharon's gonna clean up your arm as carefully as she can and I'm gonna go look for something to make a couple of splints for you. Then we can get you out of here. We're almost back to the Rover so it won't be long, I promise. You understand me?"

"Un huh," Chris said between clenched teeth. He still wasn't going to let himself cry.

"Good man," he said giving Chris's right shoulder a reassuring squeeze before he took off.

Sharon was extremely gentle in cleaning as much dirt and debris as possible from Chris's scraped up arm. Johnny had been carrying a couple of water bottles so she used the water to rinse as much dirt out of the wound as possible. Carefully she bandaged up the raw abrasions on his arm. She tried hard not to move his arm much, knowing that it brought a considerable amount of pain when she did. She spoke soothingly to him as she worked telling him what she was doing as she did it. "How are you doing, Champ?" she asked when she finished.

"It still really hurts. I wish my dad was here." Chris answered.

"I know, Sweetheart," Sharon responded. "We're almost to him. I'm gonna clean some of the dirt off of your face now. Your Uncle should be back very soon." Sharon had finished cleaning up Chris' face and was checking on his vitals. Pulse was 95, and his breathing was normal. Chris seemed as though he was doing fine, all things considered. Before long, Johnny was back. "What did you find?" inquired Nurse Sharon.

"I got lucky," stated the paramedic. I found two small trees that had been blown down near each other. They both had thick layers of bark that were coming apart from the trunks. I brought these two chunks and I think they will do the job nicely." He held them up for her to see. One was smaller and narrower than the other and it seemed as if nature had _actually prepared_ for just such an incident.

"Chris, this is gonna hurt, but we have to get your arm and leg immobilized so I can carry you out." Johnny was explaining as he double-checked for bugs in the make shift splints. There were bound to be some, but he tried to make sure he got rid of any that were there. He didn't want his nephew being eaten alive by insects, adding insult to injury! When he was satisfied that the first one would do, he carefully splinted the arm. Sharon used one hand to hold Chris's injured arm up for Johnny to take care of and let Chris squeeze her other hand with his right one.

"Squeeze tight when it hurts. I can take it." She instructed the stoic young man. Chris did squeeze pretty hard as Johnny got him all set up. Very quietly she said a prayer for the boy. "Lord, please comfort Chris as we do what we can for him. Please help us to get him to a doctor soon and please ease his pain. Thank you, Lord. You are our healer and our father and we are thankful that you love and take care of your children. In Jesus' name, Amen." She didn't realize either of them had heard her until she heard Johnny say, "Amen," with her.

"There now," Johnny said. "That looks pretty good, let's take care of that knee." Chris just groaned in response. He knew it was going to hurt a lot. Johnny looked around the ground along the edge of the trail a bit. Spying what he was after, he reached for it and then took out his pocketknife. Carefully he whittled the bark off of the six-inch long, half-inch diameter stick. Handing it to Chris he said, "Here, stick this between your teeth. When squeezing isn't enough, bite on this real hard. It will help you with the pain." Chris took the stick and put it in his mouth.

As gently as possible, Johnny and Sharon worked together to get the leg splinted. Chris let out some loud groans and bit down heavily on the stick, but still refused to let him self cry. "All set, Champ," said Johnny. "Now let's get you down this trail and get you to a doctor."

"Okay." Chris answered without much enthusiasm. He was using all of his concentration to deal with his pain.

As Johnny hoisted Chris carefully up onto his shoulders, Sharon cleaned up the remaining supplies and stuffed everything back into the backpack. She slipped the pack on her shoulders and the three headed back down the trail.

At the bottom of the trail, Katie was sound asleep curled up in her mother's lap on a blanket in the shade. Roy was seated behind Joanne and she was with his arms around her providing some back support. He was taking advantage of the moment to kiss her neck and nibble on her earlobe. Both were content and enjoying the moment when Roy felt Joanne stiffen up. She gasped loudly and stiffened.

"What's wrong?" asked Roy, alarmed. He looked up to see Johnny carrying his son, obviously injured, with Sharon right behind them. He leapt to his feet and ran over to Johnny. "Chris, what happened?"

"I fell Dad. I shouldn't have been running. I'm sorry."

"Don't you worry about that. Let's get you to a doctor." Roy helped get his son down from Johnny's shoulders and situated in the Rover while Sharon filled Joanne in on the details of what had happened. Once Chris was situated, Roy put Katie in the truck and Joanne climbed into the back seat of the Rover to ride with their son. Sharon picked up the picnic blanket, folded it and put it in the truck, then climbed into the Rover.

"Drive carefully, Junior," Roy instructed as he headed toward his truck. "I'll follow you."

Joanne did her best to keep Chris comfortable for the ride. "Mama's right here," she soothed. "We're going as fast as we can. Hang in there." It would be an hour before they reached a hospital.

**Thanks for reading. Please take a minute to leave a review. Tell me what you like or what you don't. It only takes a minute and it truly is painless. Thanks! -Hotflash**


	4. Chapter 4

Everything Changes

**Chapter 4**

"How's Chris?" asked Johnny as he walked into the locker room the next morning.

"Oh, Hi Johnny," Roy answered. "Chris will be fine. He's a little put out by the wheel chair though."

"Wheel chair? What's wrong with Chris?" asked Marco.

"Oh, we went hiking and he took a pretty bad fall. He broke his arm and sprained his knee pretty severely. He has to use a wheel chair because he can't use crutches with a broken arm."

"What happened, Gage push him down?" Chet tried to get Johnny's goat.

"Shut up, Chet!" It came in stereo from both Johnny and Marco. Roy just shook his head and shot him a look that said, "_don't start!" _ Chet hung his head down.

Chet didn't mean to come off like a jerk. He just didn't think things through very well sometimes. He knew he'd stuck his foot in his mouth this time. "Sorry, I guess that was outta line."

"It sure was, Pal. It sure was." Chet could hear the disappointment in Marco's voice as he admonished his friend.

"How'd it happen, Roy?" Mike sounded very concerned.

"Well, Mike, I guess he was excited because he had been watching a bear with Johnny and he couldn't wait to tell me all about it. He kept running ahead and he just stepped on a rock that rolled out from under his foot. That was all she wrote!"

"Man, tough break for the kid. Kind of takes the joy out of the moment," Mike said.

"Ya got that right!" Roy agreed. "He forgot to tell me about the bear. Johnny told me about it after I got him to bed. I'm sure he'll have remembered by the time I get home tomorrow, though," he added with a chuckle.

"Gentlemen, 5 minutes until roll call," called Captain Stanley. "John, Roy? We have a new paramedic trainee starting today."

"Thanks for the heads up, Cap." Roy didn't like surprises. He appreciated his Captain letting him know before he met the man.

"What's his name?" asked John.

"Sam," said Sam who had just walked in, already in uniform. Six heads turned toward the doorway as six mouths fell open. 12 eyes stared. Six men were speechless and one looked like he was going to be sick. The boys had trained a woman before in the paramedic program, but this one was different. _She_ was in a _fire department_ uniform. And, she was carrying turn out gear.

Captain Stanley was the first to regain his composure. "You're Sam Anderson?" he asked, trying not to look or sound too uncomfortable with the situation. "Captain Stanley. Welcome to 51's." He reached out to shake her hand. She accepted the gesture and shook back firmly… very firmly.

Roy followed his Captain's lead. He locked eyes with her. "Ms. Anderson, I'm Roy DeSoto." Holding out his hand he continued, "This is my partner, John Gage." As he introduced Johnny he gestured with his head toward the lanky paramedic. Captain Stanley watched the awkward exchange with a bit of a forced smile on his face. He thought his Sr. Paramedic looked more uneasy than the rest of the crew and he wasn't sure why.

"Pleased to meet you, DeSoto. She looked him square in the eye as she shook his hand. "Gage." She acknowledged him with a nod. Captain Stanley thought he saw something in DeSoto's eyes. Was it fear? He didn't think so… exactly. There was a definite shadow though.

The klaxons sounded, rudely interrupting the exchange. **"Squad 51, man down 5218 Washington Avenue. 5-2-1-8 Washington Avenue. Time out 8:04"**

John and Roy looked at their captain for direction. Were they supposed to take her with them? They hadn't even briefed her on anything yet. Mike responded to the county, "10-4 LA Squad 51 responding. KMG-365." He wrote down the address and handed the slip to Roy.

Cap gestured with his head for the paramedics to get moving, but he reached out to Sam and took her by the arm. "Wait for the next one," he said. "You won't have to wait long, I'm sure." Sam was instantly pissed off, but she knew better than to show it so she perforated her tongue with her teeth.

Two hours later, the men were just finishing up chores when the squad backed in to the bay. "John, Roy, my office please." The paramedics were happy to oblige their captain. They had questions and hoped he had answers. "Close the door, please." He said, gesturing his men to sit down.

"So," said Roy. "What's the word from HQ?

"Well boys, apparently, LA has hired their first female firefighter." Said Captain Stanley. Roy and John looked at each other and then back to their captain.

"Come on, Cap," said John. "This can't…"

"Get used to it John." Captain Stanley ordered, sternly. "We have the _privilege_ of overseeing this boot because you two are our top paramedic trainers and because the Chief says he knows that 51's will be sensitive and respectful of the situation. He knows it is going to be a tough transition, but times are changing and we need to get on board with it."

"So, you're saying she's going in with us?" asked Roy.

"At fires? Absolutely! Just like any other fire department paramedic." Answered Captain Stanley.

"Okay, Cap." Roy said. "Thanks for looking into things while we were out."

"Any time, Roy. I'm not exactly thrilled either, but we do the job we're asked to do. Roy, you're cooking today. I assigned Sam to help and to clean the day room. John you're to mop the bay. And you two better take some time to get to know your new sidekick and show her the squad. She's all yours now. And she's madder than a wet hen that she missed the first call. She's been biting her tongue since you two left."

The boys chuckled. "Okay Cap," they both said, turning to leave the office.

"John, you go ahead and start orienting Sam with the squad, Roy will be out in a few minutes." Captain Stanley instructed. "Roy?" he said, gesturing him to stay and close the door. He knew something was amiss with Roy and he wanted to feel him out.

Roy let out a long sigh as he closed the door. He sat in a chair stretching his legs out and leaning back with his arms folded across his chest. He was nervously biting his lip, waiting or his captain to speak.

Hank Stanley waited a moment before speaking as he studied Roy's face and posture. Something was seriously troubling this man and it was clear he did not want to discuss it, but Hank wasn't going to just ignore it. He decided a direct approach was best. "All right, DeSoto. We've worked together a long time. We know each other pretty well, agreed?"

Roy nodded in agreement.

"Then you know that I can tell there is more to this situation than Sam being a woman that is really bothering you. Right so far?" Roy didn't have to answer verbally. His eyes went to the floor and that was the only confirmation Hank needed. After another minute of silence Hank said, "Anything you care to share with your Captain?" Roy gave a barely noticeable shake of his head.

Hank looked thoughtfully at his senior paramedic. "All right then, how about as your friend?"

Roy started shaking his head more noticeably. "Not now, Cap. Not right now."

"Okay then. Just remember, my door is always open. Are you okay?"

"I will be eventually." Roy answered. "I do have one question for you."

"Ask away." Responded Hank.

"Why didn't the department tell us? How could they hire a woman and not one fireman knew it? And how does she start out as a paramedic trainee? She hasn't even gotten her feet wet yet!"

Hank couldn't help but smile a little as Roy's "one question" spilled over the floodgates of Roy's lips. "Those are very good questions Roy. And I already asked them myself, when I spoke to the chief."

"What did he say?" asked Roy.

"Well, for starters, the department kept it quiet to avoid a media fiasco. They figured if one of the guys knew it, they wouldn't be able to keep it quiet."

"That's probably true." Admitted Roy.

"As far as starting a boot as a paramedic trainee goes, she's apparently only a boot in LA County."

Roy looked at his captain an incredulous look on his face. "So you're saying she's worked somewhere else as a firefighter?" he asked. _Impossible!_

"That's exactly what I'm saying." Answered Hank. "She's put in five years as a volley in Pierce County, Washington State."

"Son of a bitch!" He said loudly, sitting forward and grasping the arms of the chair he was sitting in. Roy was hot under the collar.

Hank's eyes widened in amazement and curiosity at Roy's reaction. "What is it pal?"

"Nothing!" answered Roy, tersely. "May I be excused?" Hank gestured toward the door. Roy walked out, red faced and angry.

**Thanks for reading and please, please, PLEASE leave me a review. It is very helpful to me and it only takes a minute. Thank you. -Hotflash**


	5. Chapter 5

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 5**

"…And that's how the bio-phone works." Johnny explained to Sam.

"Wow, that is really cool. So this thing goes into all kinds of situations where you wouldn't otherwise be able to obtain advice and direction from a doctor. What a nifty little invention," Sam marveled.

Johnny gave her a signature smile and a nod of his head as he put the bio-phone away. "Well, that's the squad," he said. "Any questions?"

"Um, yeah. I was wondering, what's _with_ your partner? He seems almost… hostile. I mean, he was polite and all, it was more of an attitude or something, you know? It seemed to just emanate from him."

Johnny knew to tread carefully. He didn't want to stick his foot in his mouth as he was prone to do. "Well you know… Roy… I mean… Well, you gotta understand, we were taken by surprise is all. Roy doesn't like surprises. He's a thinker. He likes to toss things around in his head a while before he has to swallow them." Johnny knew he wasn't explaining well at all and wished the klaxons would sound and rescue him from this hellish conversation.

Unbeknownst to the paramedic and the trainee, Roy was only a few feet away from them and heard the whole thing. "Actually, I _like_ surprises. I _love_ when my son earns a new scout badge. I _love_ coming home to a picture my daughter has drawn me. I _love_ getting a phone call from my wife just so she can tell me she loves me. I _love_ when my mother calls to say hi and that she misses me. _Surprises_ are great. What I _don't_ love is a lack of communication." I don't think a _little_ communication is too much to ask." Roy nearly spit the words out he was so angry.

Sam looked Roy squarely in the eye and demanded, "Would you be so angry if I was a man?"

_I wouldn't be so angry if you were anyone else, anyone at all. _Roy bit his tongue to keep from saying what was on his mind. "I'm not going to dignify that with an answer," said Roy. "If you two are through with the squad, we have supplies to pick up and groceries to buy. Let's get going."

Johnny had mixed emotions about Sam. On the one hand, he never minded having a pretty lady around. On the other, he wasn't sure he was ready to work side by side with, moreover _to depend on_, a female firefighter. Still, even if Roy was having those same mixed feelings; he didn't understand why Roy was being so… so… hostile. She was right. He _was_ hostile. John knew Roy prided himself on being able to work with _any_ partner. _What's with you, Pally?_

Sam was not at all pleased at Roy's reaction to her. She had expected resistance to her presence in the fire department, but she had also expected professional civility. She had been one of only two women in the volunteer department she worked for in Washington State, but the guys there were at least civil… most of the time. _DeSoto, you'd better get used to me, cause I'm here for the long haul. _

"I guess I ride in the middle?" surmised Sam, sliding in to the squad.

"Yes ma'am." Answered Johnny, sliding in after her.

Roy got in and slammed the door harder than necessary. He drove to Rampart without saying a word. The tension was thick enough in the squad that it would have taken the K-12 to cut it.

At Rampart, Nurse Dixie McCall was inventorying supplies when the paramedics walked in. "Hi Boys," she said cheerfully. "Who's your friend?"

"Hi Dix," said Roy as Johnny and he exchanged glances. _Why wouldn't she know who Sam was? Sam just finished her paramedic training at the hospital, didn't she? _"This is Sam. Sam is the new boot at 51's and we have the _privilege_ of providing her field training as a paramedic." The sarcasm in his voice, subtle though it was, was not lost on any of them.

"Far out!" said Dixie. "So… you're a firefighter?" Dixie had given her the once over, surprised to see a woman in a fire department uniform.

"Sure am, and a damn good one, too!" Sam stated, confidently.

"Well bully for you." Responded Dixie. She wasn't impressed with the attitude, but she sort of understood it too, being a woman herself. Looking back at Johnny and Roy she said, "So, what is it that you need today boys?" Johnny handed her a list of supplies and she gathered them for him. She and Johnny signed the required paperwork and then she excused herself politely.

"Thanks, Dix." Said Johnny. Turning to the others he said, "Hey, let's get some coffee in the lounge before we go. I could really use the pick-me-up."

"Fine." Said Roy with no particular enthusiasm.

"Ah, I'll pass." Said Sam. "I'll wait for you in the squad. Don't rush on my account." _Maybe a few minutes alone with his partner will get him to calm down and lighten up._

"Sure, okay. Here!" said John, handing her the supplies. "Maybe you could put these away while you wait."

"Why not?" she said taking them. Then she and the dynamic duo headed off in opposite directions.

After each man had poured himself a cup of coffee and they had each drank a little of it Johnny could wait no longer to feel Roy out. "Roy, can I ask you something?" he started.

"No."

Johnny ignored Roy's response. "Now Roy, it just seems to me you are way too worked up about Sam. I mean, I don't really like the idea of a woman fireman… uh… firefighter either, but man, Roy. You've been downright hostile to her. What's wrong?"

_If only I could tell you, Junior._ "Nothing's wrong." Roy said.

"Roy, this is me, your partner… your _friend_, remember? I know you Roy. Now something's eating at you. What is it?"

"It's none of your business, Johnny, now leave it alone!" he barked back.

Johnny's feelings were hurt. But he wasn't about to tell Roy that. "All right. All right. Fine. You don't want to talk about it? We won't talk about it. But Roy, sooner or later you're going to have to face it. And I'm telling you Roy… you better do it sooner than later. You're going to get yourself in a heap of trouble with the Cap and the Chief if you don't."

"You're concern is duly noted," said Roy, sarcastically. He set his cup down in the sink. "Come on. We have work to do." Roy didn't wait for Johnny as he walked towards the door to leave.

Meanwhile, sitting in the squad by herself, Sam was thinking out loud. "Who died and made him king?" She couldn't believe that he was being so hostile. She hadn't even done anything. Did he think he had the market cornered on being a firefighter? Was he God's gift to firefighting? He certainly seemed to think so. Well, he was going to have to get over it, and soon! "I've worked very hard to get here. I _earned_ the right to be here and I am not letting Roy DeSoto or anyone else knock me out of the game!"

Sam continued ranting to herself as she opened the compartment on the squad and proceeded to put the supplies away in their proper places in the various boxes. "I guess nothing ever changes!" she said out loud. "I have to work three times as hard and do three times as well and still I cannot get any respect. Sometimes I could just throttle someone!" Finally exasperated enough that she was at a loss for words; she climbed into the squad and waited, inwardly lost in her own frustration. She was leaning on the driver's door with her legs across the seat and her eyes closed. When Roy opened the door to the squad, she nearly fell out. Letting out a startled shriek, she saved herself by grabbing onto the steering wheel.

"What the hell?" Roy exclaimed in surprise.

Embarrassed, Sam fell into a fit of laughter. "I'm s... so... I'm sorry!" she gasped, red faced. She took a deep breath to try and collect her self a bit. "I was just relaxing waiting for you two. I thought you would see me before you opened the door."

Roy felt a _little_ bad about it. He _should_ have seen her leaning against the door. If he hadn't been so wrapped up in being angry with her, he probably would have. "Sorry," he mumbled. "I didn't see you. Are you all right?"

_He __is__ human. _ "Fine, I'm fine. Just my pride is hurt a little. I… I'm sorry too." She answered, scooting to the center of the seat to make room for the boys. "You didn't get hit by the door when I pushed through it did you?"

"Me? Nah, I'm fine. You just kinda startled me is all."

"Excuse me you two lovebirds," Johnny teased, seeing they were being somewhat civil toward each other. "If neither of you is injured too terribly badly, you think we could hit the road? We still have to hit the supermarket and get back in time to serve lunch."

Roy rolled his eyes at his partner. That man was always thinking about his stomach. "All right, Junior. Let's go."

When the trio returned to the station, John set out to clean the bay while Sam and Roy headed to the kitchen. The engine crew was out on a call. Sam took advantage of the time alone with Roy to start a much-needed dialogue.

"Roy?" She said. She was putting the last of the groceries in the fridge and he was filling the sink with soapy water to wash the assorted cups and stray dishes left from breakfast. Roy didn't say anything but turned his head to look at her indicating she could continue to speak.

"We really need to talk. Things are really… awkward," she said.

"Well, what did you expect?" he asked, shaking the soapy water off of his hands and turning around to face her.

"I…" she looked down at the floor. "I… I know I hurt you." She acknowledged. "I… I'm sorry about that. I wish… I wish I could… take it back, I mean… do things differently."

Roy didn't speak. He just looked at her. He didn't know what to say to her because having worried about her for so long, seeing her now was in many ways a relief. He just wished that their reunion hadn't taken place here, this way. He wanted to take her in his arms and hold her and keep her safe from the whole world.

Sam misinterpreted the silence. She figured that it meant he didn't care. He had already washed his hands of her. "So… What now?" she finally asked, still looking at the floor.

"I don't know," he answered honestly. "I don't know what to do, what to think. Why are you here, Sam?"

"Because I missed you so much, Roy. When you went to Vietnam, I felt so… so… alone. I couldn't talk to anybody. They… they wouldn't listen to how _I_ felt. They just kept saying how wonderful you were, how brave. How we all had to do our part to support the boys who were gone. When I tried to talk about it they would tell me I was being selfish, thinking about myself when you were over there putting yourself in harm's way, helping people. Then… when Jack's mom got the news… Roy, I just couldn't take it." Tears were streaming down her face as she spoke. For the moment, Roy's anger was replaced with compassion. He stepped over to her and put his arm around her shoulder.

"It's okay, Sammy, that was long time ago." The sound of the engine crew returning broke up the party in the kitchen. Sam quickly turned her back to the doorway so she would have moment to dry her eyes and regain her composure before the men walked in. Roy returned to the dishes.

"Hi gu... ah…" Whoops! Sam was most certainly NOT a guy. "Roy, Sam." Stammered Mike. "What's for lunch?" He reached up into the cabinet for a coffee cup as he asked.

"Grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup." Answered Sam. "And if you're nice, there may be some dessert around here too." She did her best to sound cheerful.

"Would you like some coffee, Sam?" Mike asked nodding towards the cup in his hand.

"Sure… Yes please." She answered.

Mike handed her the cup he had just poured and then reached into the cabinet for another cup. "Roy? You want some too?"

Roy put his hand up in the air, palm facing out. "No thanks, Mike. I'm wound up tight enough for the moment."

Mike shrugged and said, "Suit your self," as he poured another cup for himself.

Sam set her cup down on the counter and walked over to the refrigerator and took out the brick of cheddar cheese they had bought, the mayonnaise and some milk. Setting them on the counter she looked at Roy, who had just finished the dishes and said, "I'll do lunch, you clean up. Then I'll help you with dinner and we'll clean up together. Deal?"

Roy nodded at her, a pleasant smile on his face. "You're on." He answered. He sat down at the table and reached for the newspaper.

Mike leaned against the sink, his back to it. "So tell me Sam, how did you come to join the LA County Fire Department?"

Sam rummaged through the kitchen drawers until she found what she was looking for, then set about preparing lunch. Chet Kelly and Marco Lopez walked in looking for coffee just as she was getting ready to cut the first slice of cheese. Before Sam could start to answer Mike's question Chet made a disgusting noise that sounded an awful lot like a bodily function in hyper-drive.

"Ah, man. Sam cut the cheese!" he said, smirking at his own cleverness and waving his hand in front of his nose.

"Oh, grow up, Kelly!" Lopez warned. "It isn't wise to insult the hand that feeds you."

She tried to take it in stride, but the blush on her cheeks betrayed her feelings of embarrassment. "It's okay, guys. I can take it. I put on my big girl panties today."

Her unexpected comeback brought a few hearty peals of laughter from Mike, Marco and Cap, who walked in during the exchange. Roy grinned behind his newspaper. _That's my Sammy. _

Chet sat down at the table and reached for any available section of the newspaper. It would at least hide his face for a while. Marco and Captain Stanley made themselves at home looking at magazines.

"Sam," reminded Mike. "You were about to tell me what brought you…

The klaxons interrupted again. **Engine 51, assist squad 110. Traffic accident with injuries…**

**Please leave me a review!! I want to know if anybody is reading this story. I also want to know what you like or don't like or any other comments you might have for me. I appreciate those of you who are reading this and especially those of you who take the extra minute or two to leave feedback. It keeps me motivated to write more. Thank you. -Hotflash**


	6. Chapter 6

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 6**

*** Thanks to all of those who are leaving me feedback! It truly helps to keep me writing. I try to respond to each one left, but some of you are not logging in to leave it so I cannot respond. To you I just want to say, I still appreciate your feedback, but would love to be able to respond to your comments if you would log in when you leave feedback so that I can. Either way, I appreciate each of you taking the time to read and respond to my story. I'm sure enjoying writing it! -Hotflash**

For most of the rest of the day, the crew of 51's was rarely all together. When the engine crew was in house, the squad was out and vice versa until late in the afternoon. Somehow, between runs, Roy and Sam managed to prep the evening meal for the crew. It was after six when they were able to actually start to cook. They were almost ready to put it on the table when the engine backed into the bay.

Mike was the first to enter the day room. "Mmmmm, that smells great. When do we eat? I'm starved!"

"We'll be ready to put it on the table in about 10 minutes," answered Sam. As she looked up she noticed the handsome engineer was focused only on her as if the room they were in was otherwise empty. Roy noticed it too. _He's checking her out!_

"What are you fixing?"

"Italian chicken, sautéed vegetable medley and roasted potatoes with rosemary," she answered.

"Who's Rosemary?" asked Cap, giving a wink as he sat down at the table.

"Good one, Cap!" Mike congratulated him for his quick wit.

"I'm sure glad _you're_ helping cook," commented Chet. "I always _worry_ when it's Roy's turn to cook."

"Coming from you, Chet, I'll take that as a compliment!" retorted Roy.

"Es Verdad, Amigo," chimed in Marco. "The station went through a whole bottle of antacid after the last meal you prepared!"

"Here, here!" Captain Stanley whole-heartedly agreed with the others.

"What's for dessert?" asked Johnny, thinking only about his stomach, as usual.

"My specialty!" answered Sam proudly.

"Oh yeah? What would that be?" Mike asked, a big silly grin on his face.

When Sam didn't answer, Mike looked at her co-chef for an answer. "Roy?"

"Would you believe, chocolate chunk brownies with caramel sauce and toasted pecans?"

"So that's that great smell in here!" Chet exclaimed. I knew I smelled chocolate!"

"Well, we're certainly having gourmet chow tonight, boys and after a day like today, I think we all deserve it. I just hope we don't get toned out before we have a chance to enjoy it!"

Sam beamed at the praise of her captain. "Well, DeSoto, I guess we'd better set the table. Dinner's just about done." Before she could reach the cupboard to take the plates out, Mike was there in a flash, beating her to it. He quickly dealt the plates out, almost as if they were a deck of cards, and went back for glasses while Roy set out silverware and napkins. Sam got the milk and iced tea pitcher out of the refrigerator and placed them on the table. Roy put trivets down and then he and Sam brought the steaming pans of food to the table for all to enjoy. Mike pulled out a chair for Sam before seating him self, right next to her, much to Chet's chagrin. Chet had to settle for a spot across the table from her.

By some act of providence, the crew of 51's was not toned out for quite some time. They were able to eat their dinner and their dessert without interruption. After the food had been polished off and the kitchen had been cleaned, the engine crew began taking turns in the shower after a long day of roadside brush fires, a few rubbish fires and an out of control barbecue grill. Soon the men were relaxing and watching "King Kong" on television. Sam quietly slipped out of the day room unnoticed… by all but one observant fireman.

Johnny was having a hard time concentrating on the movie. Everyone else seemed to be enjoying it, but he just couldn't concentrate on it. All he could think about was Sharon. He chuckled softly to himself as he remembered how she had gone completely white when he had pointed out the bear on the hike. He had put his arms around her protectively, just as a reassurance that she was safe, and she hadn't resisted. It hadn't been an intentional move on her, but it ended up moving things along for Johnny.

Thinking about that day, Johnny could almost feel Sharon's soft hair under his chin and smell the sweetness in her hair from her shampoo. He remembered how small her hand was as he held it on the hike down to the car and he felt all warm inside with the memories.

"…Isn't that right, Gage?" asked Cap during a commercial break.

The sound of his name snapped him back to the present. "Huh? I missed that!"

"You sure did, Amigo. You weren't even on the same planet? Where were you anyway?" asked Marco.

"It's obvious guys, Johnny's twitterpated again! Can't you tell? Who's the chick this time, Johnny-boy?" Chet teased. "Wait, don't tell me! I bet it's Sam! Right John-boy? Am I right?"

"Knock it off, Kelly!" ordered Cap, looking around to see how this was going over with Sam. Suddenly he realized she wasn't even in the room. _Where'd she go?_

Just as the commercial break was ending the phone rang. Roy was closest so he answered it. "Fire Department, Station 51, Fireman DeSoto speaking."

"Oh, hi Roy, this is Sharon. Sharon Walter."

"Well hi there." He said brightly. "How are you?" There was a pause in the station side of the conversation as Roy waited for her to speak. "Ah well, good. That's great…Chris? Oh well, he's doing fine, just fine…oh, no, no. You don't need to apologize. It wasn't your fault. It wasn't anyone's fault really. It was an accident. Accidents just happen sometimes…well, you shouldn't feel bad about it. You're welcome. Johnny? Yeah, I'll get him for you." He motioned to Johnny who was staring at him intently while he spoke on the phone. "All right now, well, you take care. Here's Johnny." He handed the phone to Johnny as he walked by. Johnny waved him to hang on and said,

"Hang on for just a minute. I'll take it in the dorm." He winked at Roy for effect on the way through the doorway.

"Sharon? Hang on just a second, will ya? Johnny's going to pick up the extension." Roy waited until he heard Johnny say hello and then hung the receiver up quietly.

Johnny didn't need Roy to tell him who was on the phone. He could tell by Roy's end of the conversation. His heart skipped a beat or two when he realized it was Sharon. "Hi Sharon!" he said, not even trying to hide his pleasure and surprise at her call.

"Hi Johnny." Sharon sounded happy too.

"Well, how are ya doin?" asked Johnny.

"Fine. I wanted to know how Chris was doing so I thought I would call and find out. I was kind of worried about him."

"Oh," said Johnny, sounding a little deflated. "Well, it's like Roy said, he's fine. Doc say's he should heal up just fine."

"That's good." Said Sharon. "I'm glad you were prepared and that we were with him when it happened."

"That _was_ fortunate," Johnny agreed. Now neither one knew quite what to say to the other. Johnny could have talked about anything, all night long, given the chance. But he was waiting on her. She called _him_ not the other way around. After about a 30 second awkward silence Sharon finally spoke.

"Johnny, about the other day…" she stopped, trying to figure out how to say things.

"What about it?" he asked.

"Well, you know, when we saw that bear?" she continued and he waited patiently for her to finish. "When you pointed it out, I was kind of, well, scared." She admitted.

"Oh, well, that's okay, Sharon. A lot of people would've reacted like that." he reassured her.

"I… I… I know, Johnny. It's not that. It's… well, when you put your arms around me, I felt so… safe. I liked it." _There! I said it._

Johnny exhaled, suddenly realizing he had been holding his breath waiting for her to say what ever it was she had on her mind. A smile filled his face and his warm brown eyes twinkled with delight at her admission. He let out a little chuckle before saying, "well, for you… No charge! These arms are available whenever you need them." And then he added, "unless of course, I'm in a burning building or something like that, but as soon as I'm out…"

Sharon giggled. "Oh, Johnny!" she said. She was relieved that he kept the conversation light. She didn't understand why she felt so shy, but something about Johnny just gave her butterflies.

"That's me," he said. "At your service."

There was another short silence and Sharon couldn't stand it so she filled it quickly with, "So what do you do at the fire station when you aren't out running around in that squad of yours or flirting with nurses?"

"Well, right now, not much." He admitted. "But there's more to being a fireman than running around in our rigs and saving people. We go out and do safety inspections; we do CPR demonstrations, all kinds of things, really. We have a lot of chores around the station too. We have to keep the equipment clean and in top shape, make sure supplies are stocked, and that is a lot of work."

"Really? That sounds very interesting." She said just to keep the conversation going. "What else?"

"Well, we drill a lot. We have to make sure our skills are up and that we are familiar with the different buildings in our area, as far as what they might contain, what they're made of, how they're built. All that stuff affects how they burn and how we do our jobs."

"Wow!" Sharon said, genuinely impressed. "I had no idea it was that complicated. I thought is was more like, put on your big coat, pants, boots and helmet, grab a hose and spray the fire out."

Johnny laughed. "Well, it does kind of look like that to the people who watch us work, but it's a lot more than that. It's very technical and complicated."

"Well it's a good thing you're as smart as you are brave." She said.

"And charming. Don't forget charming!" he said grinning. "And good looking."

"That too." She laughed. "And modest!"

Johnny chuckled again. "Are we on for breakfast?" He asked her, changing the subject.

"Sure." She said. "But how about my place. I'll cook."

"That sounds great!" he answered enthusiastically. He was about to make a further suggestion of how they should spend the day but was abruptly interrupted by the klaxons again. "Sharon, I gotta go. I'll see you tomorrow!"

"OK, bye!" she answered quickly, but he never had a chance to hear her.

**Station 51 Traffic accident with unknown injuries, 8****th**** and Kenmore, Time out 08:57**

The men of 51's all ran to the rigs with Cap stopping to record the call information before heading over to his seat in the big red truck. As he handed Roy his copy of the slip he noticed that Sam had not yet joined them. "Where's Sam?" he hollered to his senior paramedic as he ran around the front of the squad.

"You got me!" answered Roy. Johnny hesitated only a moment or two before sliding into the cab of the squad and closing the door. Roy had already started her up and when Johnny closed the door he pulled out, following Engine 51 down the road, without their trainee.

Sam came running out of the bathroom with her t-shirt sticking to her braless wet body, hair dripping with suds running down, and a pair of shorts and bare feet just in time to see the squad pull out of sight of the driveway. "Damn it!" she swore. "Son of a BITCH!" _Now what?!_ In the volunteer department she would have driven her private car to the scene if this had happened. She didn't know what she was supposed to do now. With a heavy sigh Sam went into the day room, picked up the telephone and called dispatch.

An hour or so later, Sam had finished her shower, dressed properly and was reading a magazine when she heard the sound of the bay door open. She walked from the day room to the bay and watched as Mike backed in the big red truck. As Mike got out he looked her direction, smiled and shook his head slowly, side to side. He felt sorry for her, knowing that she was about to be reprimanded, wishing for her sake that she hadn't missed the call. Sam acknowledged his silent show of concern with a quick nod, turned and walked directly into Cap's office, knowing she was about to be ordered there anyway. Captain Stanley had just come around the front of the Engine and saw her head that way. He followed her in and shut the door.

When Captain Stanley closed the door to his office the two made eye contact but neither spoke right away. He let her stand down first, dropping her eyes, before he broke the uncomfortable silence. Hank was not an unreasonable man. He was disappointed that Sam had allowed this kind of mistake to happen, but he was not angry about it. Actually he found it rather amusing, but he would have never let on about that. "Have a seat, Anderson," he finally said, gesturing to a chair. Biting her lower lip nervously, she did as she was told.

"So, what happened here tonight?" he finally asked her.

Sam noted that his voice sounded relaxed and kind, not angry. She felt a little more confident because of it. "Well, Cap, I… " She didn't want to play the gender card, but it _was_ the reason she had missed the call. Cap smiled at her encouragingly hoping she would be able to just spit it out. _Okay, I'm just gonna throw it out there on the table. What the hell!_

"Cap,I know having a woman in the station makes things complicated. It's just as complicated for me as the rest of you." Hank Stanley wondered where this was going. He nodded encouragingly. "I don't want to make things harder than they already are. I figured since all the guys were watching a movie, they wouldn't even notice if I slipped out and took a shower. I hadn't had the opportunity between calls like the others had. I mean, I did but… It is just kind of awkward. I heard the call and came out as fast as I could. You should have seen me. I was quite a sight!" Her cheeks flushed as she spoke, realizing how she must have looked, and part of her was glad nobody had been there to seen her. "I threw on a shirt and shorts, and ran out to get my gear, but the truck was gone and I saw the tail end of the squad as it drove away."

The visual in his head made Hank want to laugh, but his professional side didn't let him. "Well, I guess I can kind of see how you were in a challenging spot," he said. "But, as your Captain, I have to tell you that I cannot allow something like this to happen again. We were lucky today. With you being a trainee, your absence tonight did not leave us short handed. You were the one who lost out this time because you lost out on valuable field experience, but it could just have easily been the team or worse some innocent citizen of LA county who missed out if you hadn't been an extra on the rig tonight. We will have to take measures to prevent this sort of thing from happening again. Any suggestions?" He put it in her ball court.

"Remodel?" she said, only half joking.

He couldn't help but chuckle a little so he disguised it with a cough. Doing his best to hide the smile on his face he encouraged, "Any _other_ suggestions?"

"Well Cap, I guess I have to grow a little tougher skin and make sure I check with you before I shower. At least you'll know if I might take a few seconds longer to get there. I know timing can make the difference between life and death for a victim, but Cap, I don't know what else to do."

"I think that idea sounds fine, Anderson. Now, go get some rest. With any luck we'll get to sleep tonight and you'll have made it through the first shift." He stood up and opened the door for her. She walked out and as she walked away, he shook his head slowly, a slight smile on his face.

When Sam came through the bay towards the dorm, she overheard Marco and Chet talking as they stood in the open door of the supply closet.

"I don't think we have any more," said Marco.

"Well, who was supposed to order them? We almost used the last of them on that last call. What are we gonna do if we need 'em?"

"I don't know what we're gonna do, Chet," said Marco. "And it was _your_ job to order them. I guess we'll just have to get by with the red ones." Both were grinning ear to ear as they saw Sam about to pass behind the Engine.

"Did you check the compartment over the back wheels, on the passenger side?" Chet asked.

"Oh, I didn't think to look there!" Marco answered. "Hey Sam…"

Sam turned to look at the two firemen. "Yeah?"

"Can you do me a quick favor, Amiga?"

"I guess so, what do you need?"

"Will you check that last compartment over there above the wheels? We ran out of blue flares. Chet thought there might be a few in the back of that compartment."

_Blue flares?_ Sam had never heard of blue flares. Then again, the department she volunteered in was small and rural. _This_ was a big county department. It wouldn't be the only thing they did differently here. She didn't want to look dumb by admitting she had never heard of blue flares, so she opened the compartment, looked around and closed it again. Since she didn't find any, she looked in a couple of neighboring compartments too. "Sorry guys, I don't see any."

"Well shoot! We gotta have 'em and it'll take at least a week to get 'em in!" complained Chet.

Don't worry. I'll go give 110's a call and see if they have any. We can borrow some and replace them when our order comes."

"Great idea, I wouldn't want to get caught with out them when we really need them." Chet said.

Marco walked into the dorm and picked up the phone. He dialed and waited while it rang on the other end.

"Hey man, It's Marco at 51's. Yeah, I know it's late, but you just got back same as us so I knew you were up." "Hey, we were just restocking the truck and we realized we are about out of the blue flares." Marco paused a moment. "Yeah, we looked everywhere. Do you guys have any extra we can borrow until we can get a supply delivered?" "Great. I'll talk to Captain Stanley. One of us is going to have to pick them up before the next shift. We have just a few left on the truck in the box incase the B guys need 'em, but that's it. …Okay, thanks. Bye." Marco winked at Chet who had followed him to the phone.

"110's said they have a new case of them. You can pick some up tomorrow and bring them with you the next day." Reported Marco.

"Marco, I'm leaving for a fishing trip right after shift and I won't be back until late tomorrow night. I don't have time to do it."

"Well, don't look at me Chet! I gotta help Mama Lopez tomorrow."

"Uh, guys?" Sam interrupted. She was feeling badly about letting the crew down by missing the last call. This might be a small opportunity to at leas partially make up for it. The two firemen turned to look at her again. "I go right by 110's on my way here. I could pick them up on my way in next shift if you like."

Marco and Chet looked at each other then back at Sam. "We wouldn't want to put you out or anything," Said Chet. "I guess I'm the one that screwed up. I should just leave home a half hour early. Then I'll have time to get them myself. It was my fault anyway."

"Oh, it's no big deal, really." Argued Sam. She wanted to do what ever she could to be a team player. She wanted to fit in here and would do almost anything to make it happen. She knew that after this shift all hell could break loose as word got around that there was a chick on duty!

"Well okay then, we'll let you. Thanks a lot, Anderson!" Chet reached out a hand to shake hers and seal the deal.

"No problem. Now, if you two don't mind, I'm gonna hit the hay." Turning away from them she found the bunk farthest away from the rest of the men's bunks.

Mike walked past Marco and Chet on his way to his bunk. He had overheard most of the conversation that had just taken place. "You two are rotten!" he said softly. "You ought to be nice." He shook his head as he kept going and headed for bed.

Sam carefully checked her bunker pants and boots to make sure they were in the ready, and that there were no surprises inside the boots, then she climbed in to bed, clothed in running shorts and a t-shirt. She didn't like sleeping with her brassiere on but she didn't want to have to go without it in action. There wasn't any way around it. _Man this has potential to be really awkward! If we get toned out, I'm keeping my back to the rest of them long enough for them to jump into their gear._ She needn't have worried. Her bunk was closest to the bay. All she had to do was jump in her gear while facing the door and run out.

The rest of the men of 51's filtered in over the next 15 minutes and soon all were either sleeping or trying to. The rest of the night progressed uneventfully. With morning came breakfast and the shift change. Before long, most of the A shift had left. Sam had waited until B shift was at roll call then went to the locker room to change in private. When she started to fill her duffel, she noticed an envelope had been placed just inside of it. She opened it. Inside was a note. It said, _**Please meet me for breakfast. I think we should talk. **_There was an address and nothing more. It wasn't even signed. She knew who it was though. With a heavy sigh, she finished getting ready to go and headed out to meet him.

***Please leave your feedback. I need to know people are reading. It encourages me to keep going. Feel free to ask questions, leave comments, make suggestions or point out major bloopers! Just be gentle. Thanks. -Hotflash**

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	7. Chapter 7

**Everything Changes**

Chapter 7

The fireman walked into the diner at about twenty past eight. At this time of day, on a weekday, it was "seat yourself." He chose a booth not too far from the main entrance and seated himself so that he was facing the entryway.

"Hey Sugar, what can I start you off with? Coffee?" said a fifty-ish looking waitress with too much make-up on and obviously dyed auburn hair.

"Ah, please!" he answered, smiling.

The waitress nodded an acknowledgement and smiled back. "I'll bring it back along with a menu." Seemingly on second thought she asked, "Are you expecting anyone else to join you?"

"Not really," he answered. "Unless the girl of my dreams comes walking through the door in the next ten minutes or so." He winked and smiled as he kidded with the waitress.

"Oh, you firemen! You're always joking around! Know any single firemen a bit, uh, _more distinguished_ looking for some company?" she asked, waggling her eyebrows.

He blushed a bit as he answered her. "Well, not on my shift, but if I hear of anyone, you'll be the first to know."

The waitress smiled so big it almost divided her face in two. "Aren't you a sweetie!" She pinched his cheek as she said this and then wandered off to get the coffee and menu. He heard her say as she walked away, "I _love_ firemen!"

He rolled his eyes and sighed. "Why did I have to wear the jacket?" he said quietly. _I left the uniform but I wore the jacket. Some people are just nuts!_

Looking up he saw one of his shift-mates walk through the door. The two firefighters noticed each other at the same moment and the newcomer thought inwardly, "Oh no!" Standing up from the table, Mike waved his hand in a "come on over" gesture and invited his friend to sit down. "Please, be my guest," he said, gesturing to a chair.

_This could get interesting._ "Mike, what brings you here?" he asked, surprise obvious in his voice.

"My stomach! I'm hungry. I didn't expect to see you here. Doesn't Jo usually have breakfast ready for you when you get there?" Mike asked.

"Yeah, sure. Sure she does. But today, see, Katie has a field trip and Joanne is going along as a chaperone. They left early for school this morning."

"Well, let's hear it for cheap hole-in-the-wall diners!" Mike said. Roy grinned and nodded in agreement.

"Well, Sugar, who's your friend? I don't really picture him as the girl of your dreams, but…" she winked at him as she set down the coffee. Roy raised one eyebrow at her, puzzled by her comment. As he did so, he noticed Mike Stoker had turned almost as red as the fire engine he drove. "Are you a fireman too?" she asked, cocking her head slightly and batting her mascara'd eyelashes a couple of times.

"Guilty!" Roy answered, raising his left hand. He hoped that she would notice the wedding band as he did so.

The waitress giggled. "Well, you're a cutie too, just like this guy here." She said. "But, I'm old enough to be your mom. I need someone perhaps a little more 'distinguished' than either of you. Coffee?"

"Yes, Ma'am. Thank you."

She turned and walked away to get the coffee and another menu. As she did, Roy noticed that the redness had not dissipated on his friend's face. "What the hell was _that_?" asked Roy.

"I think that was a lonely fireman buff waitress. Pretty scary, huh?" answered Mike.

"The stuff of nightmares!" agreed Roy. "I've never seen _her_ here before. She must be new."

Sam arrived at the diner at that moment. Stepping through the entryway she noticed the two firemen right away. _That's not what I expected. _Being seated facing the entryway, Mike saw her right away. Roy had his back to her but he saw Mike's face light up and he turned to see what the reason had been for it.

"Sam," he said, trying to play things off and not draw attention to the fact that he had planned to meet her here. "What a surprise!" He hoped she would take the hint.

"Roy DeSoto, you knew perfectly well I would be here!" she admonished.

_So much for diplomacy. _Roy felt his face get hot as his cheeks began to redden. He noticed Mike's stunned look towards him and felt even more embarrassed. "Oh," he said. "So you got my message."

Sam nodded, waving the note at him. "Mind if I sit down?" she asked Mike.

Mike immediately slid over to the other end of the seat allowing her to slide in next to him. _So she and Roy had planned a secret meeting here. Interesting._

After about two minutes of awkward silence Mike finally broke the ice. "Okay you two. I get the feeling there is something between you two that you didn't want the rest of the guys and me to find out. But seeing as I was here first I guess you're just gonna have to spill the beans. Out with it."

Just then the waitress returned with Roy's coffee and menu. "Oh, so YOU must be the girl of his dreams!" she said to Sam while pointing first to Sam and then to Mike. Roy noticed that both Mike and Sam turned crimson this time.

"Sure. Why not?" Sam responded, not knowing how else to react.

The waitress let out a chuckle then said, "One more coffee and menu, coming right up." She assumed Sam would want coffee and she was right.

The three waited silently for the waitress to return with yet another coffee and menu. Once she had come and gone again Mike was right back to getting to the bottom of things. "Okay, you two. I said, out with it!"

Roy and Sam looked at each other, then at Mike and again at each other. Neither one knew where to begin. Having not addressed things between themselves they hadn't a clue how to start with Mike.

Mike made eye contact with Roy and didn't let up. After a moment he softly drummed his fingers on the table as if to say, "Well? I'm waiting!" Finally, Roy broke the silence.

"Mike, to be honest with you, this is as awkward as hell! I don't even know what to say. I asked Sam to meet me here so she and I could sort some things out… Things I… we don't need the department to get involved in." Sam nodded as Roy spoke, showing her agreement.

"So you're telling me that you two already knew each other, I mean, before the shift?" Mike said. Both nodded in response.

"I see. Well, from where I sit, I think maybe you should allow me to be in on your secret. That way I can help you both keep things objective at work. It will be sticky enough just with the fact that… well… that you're a woman, Sam. Add to that a history with Roy and it has potential to blow up like nothing we've ever seen before." Roy and Sam exchanged glances again. Roy raised one eyebrow slightly as if to say _'what do you think?' _Sam let out a long sigh and shrugged her shoulders. Understanding their hesitation Mike said, "Roy, you know me. I'm not a talker. What is said here, stays here. You know I can be trusted."

"Of that, Mike, I have no doubt. You know I trust you with my life."

"Oh, who cares if he knows? As long as it stays right here, who cares?" Sam gave in.

"Are you sure, Sam?" asked Roy. She nodded in response as a tear slid down her cheek.

Roy reached across the table and took her hand, wanting to offer her as much comfort as he could. God he loved her and had missed her so much. The second he took her hand the floodgates opened. She burst out into tears. "Oh Roy, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I hurt you so!"

Roy hated when women cried. He stood up quickly and pulled her from her seat, put his arms around her and held her close. Stroking her hair he comforted her. "It's okay, Sammy. Everything's gonna be all right." He kept repeating himself as he held her until she calmed a few minutes later. Then he guided her to sit on his side of the booth and slid in beside her. He put his arm around her shoulder.

A waitress came over with a pot to refill the coffee cups. Mercifully it was not the same waitress from before. "Hi," she said brightly. "I'm Alice. I will be your waitress for the remainder of your visit. Are you ready to order or do you need a few minutes?"

"A few minutes would be nice, thank you." Answered Mike.

"You got it! Is there anything else I can bring you in the mean time?" she asked.

"No thank you." Sam squeaked out. She didn't mean to squeak but she was having a hard time keeping her emotions under control.

Alice smiled at her and said, "Okay, I'll be back." But before she left she reached in her apron pocket and pulled out a small handful of napkins. "I'm sorry I don't have any tissue, but I thought maybe these would help."

"Thank you, Ma'am," said Roy as Alice turned and walked away.

The three firefighters determined what they were going to eat, waited for Alice to return then placed their orders. When Alice again had left the table, Roy reached across with his free right hand and took hold of Sam's right hand, giving it a squeeze of reassurance and then began to tell Mike about the relationship between him and Sam.

***I know everybody loves to hate a cliff hanger, but I am not ready to let the cat out of the bag yet. I almost have all the details together in my head so I promise I will start to reveal it soon. Please take just a minute and leave me a review. I appreciate your comments and questions and your speculations. It is what makes writing the story fun. Thanks for reading and stay tuned! -Hotflash**


	8. Chapter 8

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 8**

***Okay loyal readers, this one covers a lot of ground, I think. Hopefully it answers a lot of your questions. It has been fun reading your speculation. I hope you enjoy this.**

The A shift had split uncharacteristically fast that morning as C shift took over. Perhaps it was due to the tension caused by such a drastic change in the firehouse, or perhaps something else. Johnny wasn't really sure. He was just glad the shift was over. As he drove to Sharon's place Johnny thought about how the shift had gone. Roy had been uncharacteristically moody. It was obvious that he wasn't happy about Sam's introduction to the mix. Hell, none of the team was very happy about it, but Johnny thought there had been more to it than just the fact that Sam was a woman; at least as far as Roy was concerned.

It seemed to Johnny that he must have known her from some prior time in his life. It also seemed to him that there must be unfinished business between them. He hadn't been surprised that Roy wouldn't talk about it when he had pushed, but he knew he would have to get Roy to talk about it sooner or later. That was just the way Roy dealt with things. He mulled them over and over, chewing on them, processing slowly. The problem was that he never really started to move past issues until he talked about them. Often times he avoided doing so far too long for his own good.

Just as Roy knew Johnny better than anyone else, and how to be a good friend and partner, Johnny also knew Roy like no one else did. He was going to have to push his Pally to get him to talk. It would wait until tomorrow though. Right now he had other plans.

When Johnny arrived at Sharon's apartment complex he was greatly anticipating seeing her smiling face. He took the steps to her floor two at a time. When he reached her door he smoothed his hair with his hands before knocking. Just as anticipated, Sharon answered the door with a warm smile and a twinkle in her eye. "Johnny! Come in."

Johnny gave her brief hug as he stepped into the apartment. Sharon happily allowed it and put her hand on his shoulder to pull him down to her so she could give him a quick kiss on the cheek. This earned her a famous full out Gage grin. "Thanks! What was that for?" he asked.

"Just because. Are you hungry?" she asked, brightly.

"Am I a fireman?" he asked, chuckling.

"How 'bout a ham and cheese omelet with mushrooms and onions, hash browns and some fresh fruit?"

"It sounds like the perfect breakfast for a hungry fireman!" Johnny answered enthusiastically.

"Good. Why don't you wash up and have a seat while I put it on the table."

Johnny happily complied and soon the two were enjoying a wonderful breakfast together. He complimented her several times during the meal and she blushed at each one. "Johnny, it's just breakfast." She finally said.

When all traces of food were gone, Johnny insisted Sharon allow him to help clean up the kitchen and wash the dishes. Sharon would have none of that though. "Johnny, you just worked a long shift. You go put your feet up and relax on the balcony with a nice cup of coffee. I'll join you in a few minutes when I'm through. I'll be 20 minutes, tops." When Johnny started to protest Sharon thrust the rolled up morning newspaper at him from off of the counter and pointed toward the sliding glass doors. "Go on. I mean it." Realizing he wasn't going to win, he winked at her as he thanked her and headed outside.

Johnny sat down on an aluminum framed lawn chair and put his feet up on part of the balcony railing. It was warm out with a slight breeze. From where he sat he could see the playground in a nearby park. There were young children on the swings and the slide with their mothers very close at hand. An occasional jogger would run past the playground, seemingly oblivious to the rest of the world. Johnny enjoyed the view for a few minutes then decided to take a look at the rolled up newspaper that had been thrust at him in the kitchen. As he unrolled it, he saw a very familiar face on the front page along with the headline: **LA County Fire Department Breaks New Ground –Hires First Female Firefighter. **

The picture with the article was an action shot of a very soot covered Sam in her Pierce County Fire Department bunker gear, with an injured fireman over her shoulders in a classic fireman carry. Johnny started reading the article, hoping to find out more about her. It told of her service as a volunteer firefighter, and how she had struggled for acceptance within that department. The article also talked about how women had been some of the biggest and loudest critics of female firefighters. The final paragraph told of how she had saved the lives of three firemen during her final shift with that department and then had moved out of state shortly after that, gone to paramedic training at Harbor General Hospital and then been hired by the LACoFD. The last line of the article stated, "A spokesman for the LACoFD refused to comment as to which station Ms. Anderson would be assigned to."

"So _that's _why Dixie didn't know her! She trained at Harbor General!" Johnny said out loud, not realizing it.

"Who are you talking about?" asked Sharon as she stepped out to join Johnny on the balcony.

"What? Oh, I was just reading the newspaper you gave me. There's an article in there about a new paramedic trainee we had this last shift. I couldn't figure out why Dixie didn't seem to know who she was, but the article says she trained at Harbor General. Of course Dixie wouldn't know her then."

"Her? Your new trainee is female?" Sharon asked, surprised.

"Yeah. That's her in the picture," he answered, pointing to it.

Sharon looked at the newspaper and glanced through the article. "Wow, she sounds like a pretty tough cookie."

"She'd have to be. Firefighting is hard, dangerous work. Mind you now, I don't know yet what she's _really _like. I've only spent one shift with her but I don't really think _most_ women could handle this job." Johnny was careful to use the qualifier "most" because he didn't want to start an argument. He quickly added, "Heck, there's a lot of _men_ who can't hack this job either."

Sharon wasn't sure she was really for the idea of female firefighters, but still she felt herself feeling a little defensive about it when Johnny was saying women couldn't handle the job. She didn't want to get angry about it so she decided to change the subject. She nodded, knowingly, at his last statement then said, "Johnny, are you through with the paper?"

"Yeah, sure." He answered and let her have possession of it. She took the paper and walked back into the apartment over to the wastebasket and tossed it in. Johnny took the hint that she wasn't very excited about the conversation that had just taken place and followed her into the apartment. "Sharon," he said softly. "I didn't mean…"

"Sshh. I know what you meant. I don't know if I agree, but the whole thing does kind of worry me." Sharon said.

"Why?" asked Johnny.

"Because I don't want you to get hurt."

Johnny looked at her with a questioning look on his face. He didn't understand what she was talking about. "What do you mean?"

"I want to know that if you go into a fire, you have a partner that will look after you and be strong enough to bring you out if you need help."

"Believe me, so do I," said Johnny. "But you saw that article. Sam certainly seems capable."

"Maybe, but I don't know…" she couldn't really explain why she felt the way she did. She had mixed emotions. Mad one second that there would be any implication a woman couldn't do just as good of a job, and her own doubts the next because she was afraid a woman _wouldn'_t be strong enough. "It's just that… If anything ever happened to you… "

It was Johnny's turn to "Sshh" her. "Sharon, nothing's gonna happen." He said softly. He stood up and took her hand, pulling her out of her chair. He put his hand on the side of her face and tilted her head up to look him in the eye. "We're a family. The guys all look out for each other. We make sure to get everyone out and any one of us would put our life on the line to do so for the others." He could see doubt and worry in her eyes. They were starting to tear up.

"I know, Johnny. Inside I know. But that doesn't make it any easier." She put her arms around his waist and hugged him. "I didn't want to fall for a fireman, Johnny Gage, but I have. I love you and I don't want anything to happen to you."

_She loves me? _Johnny held her tightly in his arms and didn't say anything for a moment. He just wanted to comfort her and to lose himself in the moment. He couldn't believe she had said it. She had been so shy but suddenly she was opening up and wearing her heart on her sleeve. He knew he had better be very careful with her. He cared deeply for her and he wanted to tell her exactly how he felt but he didn't want her to feel like he would rush her in any way.

After a moment he stepped away from her, just a little, so they could look in each other's eyes again. "Did you just say that you love me?" he asked her. She blushed and gave him a small smile as she lowered her head a little. "Sharon," Johnny took her face in his hands. "You don't have to be shy with me. I'm not going to hurt you. I love you too." He bent his body forward and gently kissed her on the lips. She kissed him back, tentatively. He started to stand back up but she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him back down, kissing him again with more confidence and feeling.

"That's more like it," he said afterward. "I've wanted to kiss you for a long time. I just needed to be sure you wanted to."

"I do," she said softly. "But Johnny, I still want to take things slowly."

"Fine," he said, "as slowly as you want to. I'm not going anywhere."

Sharon looked deeply into his warm brown eyes and saw nothing but love and respect reflected in them. "Good. I don't want you to."

Johnny bent down to kiss her again. Sharon kissed him back enthusiastically until they both were out of breath. Then Sharon decided she'd better get a handle on things before they got out of hand so she suggested they go for a drive to somewhere pretty.

"How 'bout we pick up some chicken and biscuits, maybe some salad and fruit, and something cold to drink and head back up to Frazier Mountain Park? It's early enough we'll have some time to hike if we want and then we can find a nice spot to enjoy our little picnic and watch the sun set before I bring you home" Johnny suggested.

"That sounds wonderful," agreed Sharon. "That was such a beautiful area. But I'm not dressed for hiking. I'll need a few minutes to get ready."

"Well how 'bout you get ready while I go pick up the food and then we'll go."

"Okay. I guess I'll see you in a little while then."

"I'll be back soon!" he promised as he gave her a quick hug. Then he kissed her cheek and dashed out the door.

Mike couldn't wait to hear Roy's explanation. If Sam had been an old flame, or worse yet, a secret current flame, things could have gotten really awkward for the quiet engineer. But this news really took him by surprise.

"Before my parents married…" explained Roy. "My father had been dating a girl named Moira who lived next door to him. Her parents were in their forties when she was born. It seems she was quite a surprise to them and they really were not that thrilled. They neglected her a lot and she sought love and attention anywhere she could find it. Apparently she and dad saw each other for quite a while. I guess after a while they figured they were not really all that compatible and they decided to stop dating."

"It wasn't long after that when my mom and dad met. They had kind of a whirlwind romance and were very happy for a few years. They brought me into the world and then for whatever reason, things changed. They began to argue constantly, according to my mom. Finally dad left the house and at some point, he and Moira moved in together. He came over regularly and helped with taking care of the lawn, fixing things around the house and all. He sent money every payday. He even spent time with me doing the things father's do but he always left at the end of the day. Then, when I was about 5, he came over and had baby Sammy with him. Moira had died giving birth. Dad never left after that. He moved back in with us."

"Wow." Said Mike. "That is quite a story."

"Yes," said Sam. "But there is more. Dad insisted that "Mom" adopt me and so after a while she did. Mom always resented me though. She told me when I was about ten that every time she looked at me it made her sick! I guess I was the spitting image of my birth mother. Roy and I grew up with him running interference for me. He was always protecting me from her. She wasn't physically abusive but her words hurt more than any physical pain ever could have. Then mom and dad began taking in foster kids for the money. We had 4 of them ages 3-7 when dad went to work one day and never came back. He and his partner were both killed in a warehouse fire. After that I could never please mother. I cried in bed every night and Roy would hear me through our thin walls. He always came to me and held me until I stopped crying and fell asleep. Then he'd tuck me in and go back to bed. He was the only person left in the world that loved me, and the only person I could talk to. Mom kind of stopped living when that happened. I mean, she was there, but she didn't do anything except sleep, drink and yell at me. Roy went to work doing whatever he could to help support us, and I took care of the kids. But then Roy got drafted."

"That must have been really rough on you both." Mike said.

"It was. Roy's best friend Jack helped me a lot at first. He used to come help me with the kids and the housework after he got off work. Then he would hang out and keep me company. He'd talk to me until late at night. Then he'd go home and I'd go to bed. I still cried myself to sleep. I missed Roy so much. Mom kept telling me he left because I was such a pain in the ass. Later she'd tell me it was my fault when we didn't hear from him for a long time. Then Jack got drafted too. He was only there a week when he was killed."

Sam went on to tell some of the horrors she had to endure emotionally at the hand of her adopted mother. Roy was horrified at the pain it must have caused his sister.

"I just up and left home after that. I had no help and no one to talk to and I couldn't take that woman any more. I still don't speak to her. The funny thing was, she was always loving and kind to the other kids. Dysfunctional yes, and unable to care for them after Dad died, but she loved them. She never loved me. All she could do was hate me. And she let me know it every day."

Roy had never heard the whole story from Sam's point of view. He had no idea how bad it had been for her after he left. Now he understood why she left and why she made sure none of her family would find her. She had changed her name to her birth mother's last name and left the state. When Roy returned from the war, he never even thought of looking for her by that name.

He had tears on his face, unashamedly when she finished speaking. He asked her, "Sammy, why didn't you write me and tell me these things? In fact, why didn't you write me at all?"

"I _did_ write you, but I never got any kind of acknowledgement. Mom said you hated me and resented me for taking Dad away from the family. I kept writing you anyway and Mom would insist we mail our letters to you in the same envelope. I wrote you every week. When a letter would come from you, she would read them to me. She would "read terrible things that you said about me…"

Roy was truly horrified at this. He had always written to his mother, but he always included a special letter in the same envelope just for Sammy. Apparently she never got any of them. "Oh Sammy," Roy started. Both were in tears as he spoke. "I never said anything against you. I love you. I've always loved you. I hated being away from home because I worried about you. Especially after I found out about Jack. When I came home, Mom said you had left and told her that you hated all of us and never wanted anything to do with the entire DeSoto family again. I tried to find you. Really I did. But I couldn't."

As the two realized that their mother had lied to both of them they both openly cried. Roy held Sam close in the booth until they both had let out some of their pain. Mike carefully had excused himself to the restroom, for almost 30 minutes, to give them some privacy. He kind of wished he hadn't insisted that they tell him what was going on because it had been so painful and so personal for them. Clearly they had a lot of unspoken pain between them that they would need their own time to deal with.

When Mike was certain that the siblings had composed themselves, he returned to the table. After a few moments of awkward silence he said, "I am so sorry I pushed you two. I know it was painful for you to share and to do so while at the same time discovering more horrible truths together. I'm really sorry."

"It's okay Mike." Said Sam. "I am really trying to move on from all of this. I've spent a lot of time talking to God about this and facing it has really helped me on my road to overcoming it all."

"I'm glad." Said Mike. "Roy, are you doing okay?" he asked.

"I guess I am kind of numb right now," he answered. "It's a lot to deal with." Turning to Sam he said, "I have to confess something to you."

"No you don't…"

"Yes, I do!" Roy wasn't going to let Sam stop him. "Sammy, when I saw you walk into the bay at the station, I was shocked beyond belief. When I saw you were in uniform I was horrified. So many emotions were running through me. I was thrilled to see you and that you were okay. I was shocked that you just showed up in my life out of the blue. I was terrified to think you chose to be a firefighter. It's so dangerous and I don't want anything bad to happen to you. And I admit, a little embarrassed too. The guys are gonna be relentless. First they have to deal with the fact that women are going to do this job. On top of that, the one blazing the trail is the sister of one of their own. And all the hurt I felt when you didn't acknowledge my letters and then when you were gone when I got home just flooded through me in a fresh wave of rage. I'm sorry. You didn't deserve all that. I'm glad you're here."

"Roy, I don't blame you now for any of those feelings. I have plenty of my own emotions about all of this. All I have ever wanted from you is to love me and to be proud of me. That is why I am here. That is why I became a firefighter. It made me feel close to you again in some way. When I felt I was good enough, I came back to LA so that I could find you. I figured if I was good at it, you would want me back in your life."

"Oh, Sis," said Roy. "I think we're both pretty messed up from all of this. You don't have to prove anything to me. I love you. I've always been proud of you. You are such a survivor and have such a strong spirit. And still, all I want to do is protect you from the whole world."

"Well, Big Brother, I'm a big girl now and I've been doing it myself for a long time now. You'd better get used to it. And Roy, I love you too. I never stopped."

"It's getting kind of mushy in here, don't you think Mike?" Roy said, smiling. Mike nodded in agreement. "I think we should have this great looking ice cold food packed to go and get out of here."

"Great idea," said Sam. I was hungry when we got here, but now I am too spent to eat.

"I'm not very hungry either." Said Mike. "And hey, again, I'm sorry I put you two on the spot. I want you to know; I of course won't say a word about this. And, if you want to talk to someone, you can call me. I'm a good listener. Sometimes talking can make a big difference."

"Thanks Mike," they both said at the same time. "It already has," added Sam.

"I'm paying for the breakfast none of us ate," said Roy.

"No," said Mike. "This one is on me. It is the least I can do for friends." Roy started to protest, but Mike already had his wallet out.

"Next time, then." Said Roy. Mike nodded at him then headed to the register to pay the bill.

Roy looked at Sammy again. "You have any plans the rest of the day?"

"No."

"Why don't you come meet your niece, nephew and sister-in-law?" he suggested.

"Did you marry who I think you did?" asked Sammy.

"Yeah," he said. "I've been in love with her since fourth grade. I didn't really have a choice!"

"That is _so_ sweet!" said Sam. "I can't wait to see them all."

"Good! Let's go!."

***Thanks for continuing to read this. I hope this explanation was to your satisfaction. I'll write more whenever I can but I sure appreciate all the feedback I have been getting from you. Don't stop now. It keeps me writing. -Hotflash**

8


	9. Chapter 9

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 9**

It was a little after one in the afternoon when Roy pulled into his driveway, followed by Sammy. He got out of his car and walked over to Sammy's, opening the door for her.

"Well, here we are. It's nothing fancy, but it's home." Said Roy.

"Well, from the outside at least, I think it suits you." Responded Sammy.

Roy put an arm around his little sister's shoulders. "Come on, I'll show you around."

Sam shut the door to her car and together they walked up to the front door. As Roy unlocked the door Sammy said, "So, tell me about this niece and nephew you mentioned earlier."

Roy said, "Oh, they're great kids. Your nephew's name is Chris. He's 8, in second grade. He likes camping, hiking, and learning about first aid and field medicine. Katie, she's 5 going on 20! She's in kindergarten and she knows it all. At least, she likes to think she does!" Chuckling he continued. "She had a field trip the LA Zoo today and Joanne went along as a chaperone. They should be home soon enough though."

"So what does Katie like?"

"Barbies!" Roy shuddered and Sam noticed. Roy _hated _Barbies. * No, hate wasn't strong _enough_; secretly they _really_ creeped him out. But it didn't matter. Being the good Daddy, he played Barbies with Katie more times than he cared to remember. But he still didn't like them.

Sam laughed. "Are you _still_ afraid of Barbies?"

"Oh," he said turning red. "You _remember_ that."

"Don't worry. Your secret is safe with me." Sam laughed more and hugged her older brother. "Besides, I'm still afraid of worms!"

Roy grinned at that. "The guys will have a hey day if they find out. But your secret is safe with me!"

Roy took Sammy into the kitchen. "This is one of the best rooms in the house. My wife is a great cook!" Roy opened the refrigerator and took out the pitcher of iced tea. "Would you like some?" Roy asked as he went to the cupboard for a glass.

"Yes, please." Roy grabbed a second glass and poured the tea for both of them. They carried their glasses with them as they toured the rest of the house. When they had finished touring the inside of the house he took her to the back yard.

"Roy, you have a great home. It feels very comfortable here."

"I'm glad you feel that way. Now that I've found you… I mean, you've found me, I hope that you'll be spending time here often."

"I'd like that. I've really missed you, Roy."

Roy hugged her again, a long comfortable hug. When they released each other, Joanne was standing in the doorway staring at them. "Roy?" she said. It came out a little sharp, but she couldn't see whom his arms were wrapped around. Sam spun around to face her, startled by her presence.

"Annie, look who's here!" exclaimed Roy, oblivious to the sharpness in Joanne's expression.

Joanne stared for a moment and then her eyes flew open wide with the sudden recognition. "Oh my God!" Sam! Is it really you?" Joanne snatched her sister-in-law up in a giant hug.

"Joanne, it's so good to see you. I always knew he would marry you. It looks like you've taken very good care of my brother."

"He is well _worth_ taking care of." Joanne answered as she stepped over to her husband and hugged him. "Sweetheart, now you know she's okay. You don't have to worry anymore." The relief in Joanne's voice was very apparent. She knew that Sam held a very special place in Roy's heart and that he still thought about her often, wondering if she was okay or not.

Just then Katie walked outside to see what all the commotion was. She saw Sam standing there with a single tear sliding down her face. She looked at her parents. "Daddy, is that lady okay? She looks sad."

"I'm okay, sweetheart," Sam said, squatting down to look her in the eye. "I'm crying because I am happy."

"Why do grown ups do that?" asked the confused little girl.

Before Sam could try to answer her, Roy squatted down next to his daughter and put his hand on her shoulder. "Honey, I want you to meet someone that is very special to me. This is your Aunt Samantha."

Katie looked very confused by this. She looked at her father, questioningly and he told her, "She is my sister."

This took Katie by surprise and she scooted closer to her daddy and put her arm around him, sort of hiding under his outstretched arm. Suddenly she felt very shy.

"Hey, where are you going?" he asked her softly. "You don't have to be shy. She's a very nice lady. You're going to love her just like I do." He pulled her out from under his arm and picked her up. He held her so she was half way facing her aunt. "Katie, say hello to your Aunt Samantha," he instructed her.

"Hello Aunt Samantha." Katie said it quietly. "I'm Katie. I'm the sister and my brother is Chris, but he's still at school 'cause he didn't have a field trip today. Are you really my daddy's sister?"

"Yep, I sure am. And you can call me Aunt Sammy. It is very nice to meet you, Katie. I hear you like Barbies.

At the mention of her favorite toys, Katie's attack of shyness disappeared and she squirmed to get down out of her daddy's arms. Roy set her down and she took Sam's hand. "Come and I'll show you how many I got." She said, pulling on Sam.

"How many you _have_." Corrected Joanne, smiling. The two "_sister's_" disappeared into the house leaving Roy and Joanne alone on the deck. "Roy, how? When?" was all Joanne asked.

"Would you believe she showed up at the station yesterday morning?" He started. Joanne looked at him and slowly nodded one time as if to say, "go on."

"As our newest paramedic trainee!" he finished. Joanne was shaking her head.

"I don't believe it." She said. "Some of the other mothers said something about reading in the newspaper this morning that LA County had hired a woman. They said she had been a volunteer in Washington State or something. I never dreamed it would be someone we knew already. Let alone your long lost sister. How are you handling all of this?" she asked, suddenly concerned for her husband.

"I'm not quite sure," he admitted. "It's a lot to digest all at once. I found out some terrible things that have happened, including the reason she disappeared. I… I can't believe… our mother was so… _awful _to her. To us, but especially to her."

"I'm glad you have her back, Roy. I know how much you have missed her and how much you've worried about her. What are your plans the rest of the day?" she asked changing the direction of the conversation.

"I thought we could sort of just hang out and get reacquainted. What did you plan for dinner?

"Hamburgers, on the grill," she answered. And there is enough for Sam to stay, of course!

Roy stepped closer to his wife, wrapped his arms around her and bent down to give her a very tender kiss. "Mrs. DeSoto, I love you!" he said afterward.

"I love you too, Roy." She said smiling "Now, I think we had better go rescue our guest."

Joanne stepped into Katie's room to rescue Sammy. "Sam," she interrupted the Barbie play that was taking place. Sam looked up from the bet where she was sitting, a Barbie in her hand and a tiny pair of high-heeled shoes nearby that she was reaching for with her other hand. "Why don't you come to the kitchen and I'll refill that iced tea. I have to make some salads but I'd love to visit and catch up with you while I do it."

"But Mommy," Katie started to protest.

"Ah, ah, Katie. No arguing. You may play in your room or outside. As soon as your bother gets home I'll have a snack ready for you and I'll call you. Okay?"

"Okay," answered the little girl. The disappointment in her voice was very evident. She liked the idea of having someone new to play Barbies with.

Sam got up from Katie's bed, picked her glass up off of the windowsill and followed Joanne back to the kitchen.

"Sam, will you stay to dinner? Invited Joanne.

"I'd love to, Jo. Thanks for asking." Accepted the younger woman.

Joanne smiled at her. "I'm really glad you're here. Roy has never stopped worrying about you. He has really missed you. So did I."

"Thanks, Jo. I missed you both too. I'm sure Roy will tell you later about what happened and why I left. If I had known what mom was doing, I'd have handled things very differently. I'm sorry my absence caused Roy so much pain."

"Roy is a good man, Sam. He is kind, compassionate and understanding. Don't worry about him. Now that he knows you are well and safe, he'll be fine." It was the not knowing that was so hard."

The sound of a grumbly old diesel engine and tires on gravel caused Joanne to look up and out the kitchen window. "There's Chris's bus," she said. "I better get their snacks ready." She reached into a ceramic fire hydrant cookie jar on the counter and grabbed a handful of chocolate chip cookies. She set out two on each of two plates she had taken from the cupboard and set them on the table in Chris and Katie's usual places. She took a couple of napkins out of a drawer and set them along side the plates. She was just pouring two glasses of milk when Chris rolled into the kitchen, his wheelchair being pushed by Roy.

"Hi Mom!" he said, and then noticed the woman at the table. "Oh, hi. I'm Chris." He held out his hand to greet their guest formally.

Sammy shook the boy's hand. "I'm Sammy," she said. "It is nice to finally meet you." Chris looked quizzically at his mother. Roy had followed him into the kitchen so he explained.

"Chris, Sammy is my sister. This is your _Aunt_ Sammy."

"Dad? I didn't know you had a sister." Chris was surprised.

"Well, I do."

Chris turned back to Sammy. "Hi Aunt Sammy." He said.

"Hey, Chris. Your dad tells me you're into field medicine and first aid."

Chris's eyes lit up. He loved talking about it. "Yeah, Dad taught me CPR and then I got to demonstrate it for my scout group. Dad was the victim and I got to do all the work. Then we taught the whole group how to do it," he said excitedly. "And I earned a badge for it."

"That's great! Maybe you could show me your badge some time." Sammy encouraged.

"Okay, sure!" Chris agreed.

"I'll take Christopher here to get washed up and we'll pick up a small passenger on the way back so you can serve snack." Roy volunteered.

Johnny and Sharon enjoyed a lovely hike together back at Frazier Mountain Park. They had been rather quiet while they hiked; yet the silence was not awkward. It was more like a means of bonding together and words would have only gotten in the way. When they reached Johnny's rover at the end of the hike Johnny unlocked it, reached in and grabbed two fresh bottles of water, ice cold, from the cooler. He opened the first one and handed it to Sharon. Then he opened the second one and took a long swig, almost drinking it all in one shot.

"That feels good going down," said Sharon. "Even in the shade, it's hot!

"And we're in the mountains! Imagine what it's like back in the city with all that pavement to reflect the heat back at ya." Johnny added.

"It's so beautiful here, I wish we didn't have to go back." Sharon said.

"Well, there's no hurry. Why don't we drive around a bit and find a place for that picnic. I don't know about you, but right my stomach is saying it wants food, and soon!"

"Johnny," Sharon chuckled. "I'm starting to think that you're _always _hungry." She stepped towards the passenger door of the rover but Johnny stepped faster and opened it, holding the door and offering a hand to help her in. When she was settled in the seat, he closed the door and stepped quickly around to slide in behind the wheel.

"I know a great place!" He put the car in gear and they drove through the woods on gravel roads for almost a half hour. When Johnny's hand wasn't on the gearshift, it was holding Sharon's. When he stopped the rover, they were at a small landing near a moderately worn trail.

Getting out of the rover, Sharon could hear the sound of rushing water and knew there must be a mountain stream nearby. She looked around in the direction of the sound and she saw the rushing water coming down the well-forged path in the hillside. It flowed into a culvert and under the road, dropping down the other side.

Johnny grabbed a blanket and set it on top of the cooler on the ground while he locked up the rover. Picking up the cooler once again he said, "Come on. There is a nice spot just about thirty yards up the trail. We can have our picnic there." He let Sharon take the lead and followed her up the trail. True to his word, Sharon quickly came upon a beautiful spot right next to the mountain stream. The streambed was all rocky and there were several huge boulders lining the edge of it that the water was flowing through. One of them was very flat and large enough to spread the blanket on and Johnny did just that. Before moving the cooler onto the blanket, Johnny stood in front of Sharon. He looked down into her soft green eyes and said, "I think you are so beautiful." Then he leaned down and kissed her softly. She readily accepted his kiss and found herself wanting more. She hugged her arms more tightly around his body, pressing her own body into his and they kissed more passionately. She felt her heart rate speed up and the two of them were breathing more and more heavily as the kiss progressed. She was completely lost in the moment until she felt Johnny's hand slide down her back and stop on her behind. Suddenly she realized she was sending him mixed messages. She started to pull away but being lost in the moment himself, he pulled her back.

_Oh no. What am I doing? _She turned her head to break the kiss and then turned her body slightly away from Johnny. "Johnny… slow down." She said, embarrassed. "I… I… I just need to slow down." She felt terrible about it knowing it would be very difficult for him to change gears.

"I… I'm sorry. I didn't mean…" Sharon put a finger up to his lips and stopped him.

"It's not your fault. It's me. I'm sorry if I am confusing you. I don't want to be a tease." She apologized.

"Sharon, no. I just got carried away, that's all," the handsome paramedic explained. "I don't want to scare you away. I promised I wouldn't rush you into anything and I meant it. This was my fault and I'm sorry. It won't happen again. I promise." He really didn't want to make her uncomfortable and he was afraid she would break things off completely if he pushed her too far.

"Johnny, I'm sorry." She said, taking his hands in hers and looking into his liquid brown eyes. She could see the concern he had for her and she was humbled by it. "I _liked_ what we were doing. Don't get me wrong. I just want… I want to take things slowly. I don't want to make a mistake. And I am not ready to go any further right now. I just don't want to start something that we can't stop." Being a pom-pom girl in high school, Sharon had dated more than a few testosterone and adrenaline filled boys and she knew first hand the consequences that could come from not stopping soon enough.

Johnny took his hands away from hers and gently cupped her face in them. "Sharon, we're okay." He reassured. "We have plenty of time. Don't worry about me, I can take it. I just want to make sure you are happy." He kissed her on the forehead then led her to the cooler and the two enjoyed their picnic together. Conversation was a little slow and awkward for a short time, but they recovered well enough to enjoy each other's company. They ate their meal and for the next hour as the stream rushed on by they sat talking with Johnny's arms around her from behind as she leaned up against him. She wished they could stay like this forever. She felt wonderful in his arms. Johnny was just glad they had moved past the awkwardness and was enjoying her closeness, happy for whatever they could share together.

Around six forty five they decided they should start heading back to town. They packed up the remains of the picnic and Johnny carried it back down to the rover. On the ride back, Sharon and Johnny talked pleasantly until Sharon nodded off, in mid sentence, while talking about how she decided to go to nursing school. When Johnny noticed she was asleep he smiled and turned the radio on softly. He let her sleep the rest of the way home.

It was about a quarter to nine when Johnny pulled into the parking lot of Sharon's apartment complex. From his seat, he leaned over and kissed her lightly on the forehead. "Sharon… Sharon honey, wake up now. We're home." He brushed the hair out of her face and his touch helped her become more awake.

"Johnny? Oh, I'm sorry. I guess I fell asleep." Her face flushed with embarrassment.

"Yes, sweetheart, you did, but you're home now and I think it is time for you to go inside and go to beddy-bye in your own bed. Let's get you inside."

Sharon sat up straighter and yawned as she rubbed her eyes with the palms of her hands. "I didn't realize I was so tired."

"You've had a long day with lots of exercise and lots of fresh air. That'll do it to ya." Johnny said.

Sharon smiled at him and reached for the door handle. Johnny noticed and stopped her. "Wait, let me do that." Quickly he exited his side of the rover and went around to her side, opening the door for her and offering his hand to help her out. Sharon seemed pleased with his efforts. When she exited the Rover she did not let go of his hand and they walked up the stairway together.

Once at her door Sharon had to let go so that she could get her keys out. She unlocked the door and pushed it open, but she did not immediately go in. She looked her handsome suitor in the eye and said,

"Johnny, I had a wonderful time today."

He smiled his typical crooked grin. "Yeah? I did too. We'll have to do this again sometime soon."

"I'd like that… Johnny?" She looked shy and nervous again.

"Sharon, what is it?" he asked her, concerned.

"I just wanted to apologize again…"

He put his hand to her lips. "Stop. You didn't do anything wrong. I'm glad you told me how you feel. I can wait for as long as you need me to. I already love you so nothing you do or don't do is going to change that. Do you understand?"

Sharon smiled a wide smile and the shyness in her eyes was replaced by a happy twinkle. She nodded and reached up around his neck, pulling him down for a hug. The two shared a long hug and then he kissed her on the cheek. "Good night, Sharon. Sleep well. Have a great day at work tomorrow."

"Good night, Johnny. I will. You have a great day too. Call me, okay?"

"Count on it." He said. Then he turned and walked back to his rover, listening to make sure she locked the door after she closed it. _That's one chick who's worth the wait._

***Roy's hatred of Barbies is a reference to a story "Terror of the Barbies" posted by Waikiki23, used with permission. (Thank you Waikiki23)**

***As always, thanks for reading and I really appreciate those of you who take the extra minute or two to leave me your comments. Especially when you are logged in so that I can respond and thank you personally. Special thanks to Waikiki23 and Black-Angel-001 : Hotflash**


	10. Chapter 10

**Everything Changes**

Chapter 10

Sam awoke to the sound of a telephone ringing the next morning. *RING* At first the sound was part of her dream but she gradually become more aware of the sound and realized it was real. *RING* Opening her eyes she was momentarily disoriented. She wasn't sure where she was. *RING* Suddenly she realized she had fallen asleep at her brother's house. _Where is everyone, why don't they answer the phone? _*RING* Sam got up from the couch where she had apparently crashed and followed the sound of the rings until she found the phone and answered it.

"DeSoto residence," she said.

"Uh, uh," stuttered the voice at the other end. "Joanne?" He was sure it wasn't, but he didn't know who else it would be.

"No, I'm sorry, she uh… I guess she isn't available right now. Can I take a message?" Looking around for something to write on and with she saw a note by the coffee pot, addressed to her.

"Well, actually, I was calling for Roy. This is Mike Sto…"

"Mike! It's me, Sam."

"Oh, Sam, hi!" he said, surprised. "I didn't expect you to be there."

"Surprise." She said. "What's the message you want to leave for Roy?"

"Oh, ah, I was just gonna invite him to watch the game at my place. Some of the guys take turns hosting when the games are on. It's kind of my turn."

"Well, I'll tell him you called. Apparently I'm all alone here."

"You are?" Mike said for lack of anything else to say.

"Yeah, I just found a note. I was asleep when they left. I guess they all went to Johnny's. The kids are taking riding lessons."

"I see. Well, how are you doing?"

"I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"Well, I mean… um… well, I know you and Roy musta had a lot of catching up to do and I just thought I'd ask if you were okay, since we're on the phone and all." Mike was sure she could see his red face right through the phone. "I mean, I told you if you ever needed to talk, I would listen. I'm sure yesterday musta been kind of rough."

Sam smiled. "Mike, uh, do you feel like some company?"

"Yeah, sure!" he answered. "Can I come pick you up from somewhere?"

"That or I could meet you somewhere." She answered.

"How about breakfast?" Mike suggested. "We could meet at the diner and I'll buy you breakfast."

"I could use some breakfast. Give me say, an hour?"

"Great. I'll see you soon."

"Okay, bye Mike."

"Bye."

Mike couldn't believe his luck. He had thought about feeling Roy out over the phone and maybe asking for Sam's phone number, if Roy even had it yet, but this was even better. He wanted to get to know Sam better and big brothers were not always helpful to have around in situations like that. The best part though, was that this was _Sam's_ idea.

Almost exactly an hour later, Sam pulled into the parking lot at the diner. Mike was parked in his truck, watching for her and he watched her park, then walked over to her. Sam saw him heading her direction and couldn't help the smile that took over her face when she saw the handsome engineer.

"Hi Sam. How was the drive?" Mike asked her.

"Just fine. It is starting out to be a beautiful day."

"Yes, it is." Agreed Mike as he offered her his arm. She took it and the two walked into the diner together. The sign said "seat yourself" so they found a table for two in a back corner and Mike held the chair for Sam before seating himself. A petite redhead who looked as though she had swallowed a volkswagon bug came over and offered the two fresh cups of coffee.

"How soon is your baby due?" asked Sam. She didn't mean to be nosey, the woman just looked uncomfortable and Sam wanted _some reassurance_ that she wasn't going to have to help deliver a baby on the spot. She didn't get it.

"Six days ago," she answered, followed by a long sigh. "But someone forgot to tell the baby that."

"Well, shouldn't you be taking it easy or something?" Mike asked with concern.

"The doctor says that working is okay. She said it might even help bring on labor. I certainly hope she is right," the waitress said as she moved on to the next table.

The two firefighters watched her for a moment as she served the next table of customers. Seeing that she appeared to be just fine they gradually turned their attention back toward each other.

"So, how long have you been a fireman?" asked Sam.

"A little over ten years. How about you?"

"Two years. I joined on my 25th birthday."

"Why?"

"Why on my birthday? Or why did I join?"

"Both, I guess." Mike smiled.

"Well, I joined for several reasons. First, I missed my brother and I knew he was a firefighter, like dad, so I thought it would help me feel closer to both of them; second, I knew someday I would go find him and I wanted him to be proud of me and also I wanted to have some kind of common ground with Roy. And third, everyone said I _couldn't_ do it, especially mother."

"So you decided to prove them wrong." Mike concluded.

"Pretty much. I don't like to be told what I cannot do."

"I see. And why on your birthday?"

"For my Daddy. We shared ours. Daddy always told me I could do anything I wanted to when I grew up. He really loved me and was good to me. It was my birthday present to Daddy, even though he had to see it from Heaven." Mike didn't know what to say next but he was spared from having to figure it out when Alice, the waitress from the day before came to take their breakfast order.

While the two ate their breakfast, Mike did most of the talking, telling Sam about his family, why he joined the fire department, the things he liked to do during his off time and sharing some of his more memorable moments on the job. The usually quiet engineer was actually quite the chatterbox. Before either of them realized it, two and a half hours had passed since they had been seated. They had long since finished breakfast and had been drinking coffee and talking the rest of the time. The lunch rush was well underway and they both realized they were tying up a table for would be lunch eaters.

"Hey Sam, why don't we head out and let them have the table?" Mike suggested.

"But, I'm enjoying your company." She said. She hadn't meant to be so direct.

Mike actually blushed. Then he said, "Well, I didn't say we had to go our separate ways yet. Let's just find somewhere else to go." _Cool. I think she likes me._

"Okay, where shall we go?" she asked.

"Do you like the beach?" Mike asked.

"Sure."

"Great! We can leave your car here and I'll drive us to the beach and we can take a walk."

"Deal." Answered Sam. Inside she actually felt giddy. She started to realize she was strongly attracted to this fireman that she barely even knew. Better yet, he seemed to want to spend time with her too. Along with that realization came butterflies. And maybe even a bit of dizziness. After Mike had paid the bill, the two walked out to his truck. Mike had boldly taken her by the hand and as they reached the truck she realized her hand was sweaty. _Oh boy. I'm in trouble._

***Thanks for reading. I hope that you are still enjoying this. Please take a minute and make my day. Click on the green button below and send me a message. Let me know what you like/don't like. Point out mistakes if you like. Your feedback fuels my desire to write. Thanks so much! -Hotflash**


	11. Chapter 11

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 11**

It was an absolutely gorgeous day. The DeSoto family was enjoying the morning sunshine as they stood around the corral at Johnny's ranch, talking with each other. Except for Katie, she was happily enjoying a ride on one of Uncle Johnny's horses as he led the animal around the perimeter of the corral. He was coaching Katie, who was just learning to ride.

"Roy, just look at her. She looks so grown up." Joanne said sounding almost sad while at the same time proud.

"She sure does." He agreed. Turning to Chris he said, "How about we head in and clean the stable while Uncle Johnny is busy."

"Right," said Chris, completely unenthused. He liked visiting at Uncle Johnny's ranch and having his turn with the horses, but he did not like the chores! At least with Dad helping, it would go quickly.

Joanne was torn between giving her "boys" a hand and watching her daughter. "Roy, do you want me to help?"

Roy knew his wife well. "No that's alright honey, we can handle it. Why don't you stay and cheer Katie on?"

Joanne smiled at her husband's thoughtfulness. "I love you! Thanks." She said and blew him a kiss as he and Chris walked towards the stables.

A short while later, Katie's lesson was completed and Johnny's two horses had clean quarters. Johnny turned his tired horse over to his ranch hand to brush down and water. The kids ran off to play and the adults retreated to the back deck with iced tea to sit and relax.

"How's Sharon, Johnny?" asked Joanne.

"Oh fine, fine. We went back up in the mountains yesterday for another hike and had a picnic. I think I wore her out. She fell asleep in the car on the way home." Johnny chuckled. "We had a real nice time."

"Oh, that's good. I think she is a very sweet girl." Joanne told Johnny.

"Yeah," agreed Roy. "You two are kind of cute together." He said it with a grin.

Johnny kind of rolled his eyes in an "Oh brother" look more typical of his partner than himself. "She's a really great gal," Johnny said. "We're just… taking things… one day at a time." At that comment, Roy and Joanne exchanged glances and then turned back to their friend.

"So this is getting serious?" probed Joanne.

Johnny's face broke out into one of his famous all engaging lopsided grins. "Well, I hope so." He said with a twinkle in his eye. Johnny's stomach let out a loud grumble just at that moment.

"Johnny, don't you ever feed that thing?" Roy asked with a chuckle.

"Apparently not often enough, according to _it._ I guess I should go see about fixing us some lunch. I have some cold cuts and I can make a fruit salad, how does that sound?"

"Johnny, I can put lunch together. " Joanne offered. She was still feeling guilty about not helping with the stable. And she also knew her husband and his partner needed to talk. "You and Roy can relax while I fix it."

"Well, awright! That's great. Thank you Joanne. Feel free to use anything you can find."

"That's real nice of you, honey. Are you sure you don't want a hand?" Roy asked.

"I know my way around the kitchen, Roy DeSoto. I am sure I can handle it."

"I guess she told you," quipped his partner grinning.

Roy winked at his wife and she kissed him on the cheek before heading in to fix lunch. Johnny and Roy sat quietly for a few minutes just enjoying the pleasant day. When Johnny looked at Roy he noticed him biting his lower lip. Johnny had seen him do it at least a hundred times before. It was a habit Roy had whenever he was anxious or worried about something.

"Roy?" Johnny started. His best friend looked up at him, still biting his lip. "Now, I know you're stewing about something, and I am pretty sure it has something to do with Sam." He waited for Roy to stop him or tell him he didn't want to talk about it, but Roy just maintained eye contact with no change in demeanor and not a word, so he continued. "You said the other day you didn't want to talk about it. I know you were really upset then so I let it go, but man, Roy, I'm not just your partner, I'm your best friend. Hell, we're _brothers_. I _know _you need to talk about it. Tell me, what about Sam is bothering you so much?"

Roy continued to look his friend in the eye, but he didn't speak. Johnny thought what he saw was different than before. On shift he had seen anger, frustration and, he thought, hurt. He wondered if Sam had been an old girlfriend. Now the look in Roy's eyes was different. He looked almost remorseful and maybe sad. Johnny put his hand on his friend's shoulder. "Roy?"

Finally Roy began to speak. "Johnny, I need to tell you something." Then there was another long pause.

"I'm listening," encouraged Johnny.

Roy was wishing with everything in him that he didn't have to have this conversation. He knew Johnny would be hurt by it, but he couldn't help it. He hadn't planned things to happen the way they did but Mike was in the right place at the right time, that's the only reason he already knew. "Johnny, I don't want you to take this the wrong way."

Johnny frowned. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No. No Johnny, it isn't anything about you. It's just that…" Roy stopped mid sentence, still not sure exactly what to say to his friend. Johnny waited patiently. "You see, the problem is… What I'm trying to say is… I saw Mike at breakfast yesterday…"

Now Johnny was really confused. "So… you went to breakfast without me. What's so bad about that?"

"No Johnny, there's more. I went to breakfast expecting to meet Sam."

"Go on."

"I had left a note for Sam to meet me and when I got there, Mike was already there. We spotted each other and he invited me to sit with him. I didn't want anyone to know I was meeting Sam so I didn't really know what else to do but sit down."

"Uh huh." Johnny encouraged. "Why were you meeting Sam?" _I knew there was something going on between those two! _

"I uh… We… We had some unfinished business to deal with." Roy said.

"Did you used to date her?" asked Johnny.

"Not hardly. She's my _sister_!"

Johnny was stunned. He just stared at Roy a moment, too surprised to speak. Finally he managed to. "Your _sister!_" Johnny repeated. "Roy, I never even knew you _had_ a sister. Why haven't you ever mentioned her before?"

"I didn't know where she was." Roy answered. Johnny cocked an eyebrow at him. "When I went to Viet Nam, she never wrote me. Or at least I never got any letters from her. We had always been close so that was pretty rough. Then, before I got back, she ran away from home and disappeared off the face of the earth."

"Well, where'd she go? Why didn't you find her?"

"Apparently she went to Washington State. And I tried. I didn't find her because she changed her name."

"Right. Otherwise it would have been DeSoto. I didn't think about that. Why Anderson?" Johnny's mind was racing with questions. It was hard not to ask them all at once.

"Anderson was her birth mother's name."

"She was adopted?"

"Yeah, sort of. My parents split after I was born. Her mother died during childbirth and dad brought her home with him and moved back in. He made mom adopt her."

"So she's your half sister."

"Technically, I guess. She had it pretty rough growing up. It caused us to become very close. That's why I didn't understand her not writing and then running away."

"So when she walked in for roll call, that was the first time you had seen her since…" Roy nodded and Johnny didn't have to finish his sentence. "Man, no wonder you were mad. But Roy, you said you didn't want me to take it wrong. What did you mean?"

"Well, Johhny, as I said, Mike was there first. When Sam arrived I was sitting with Mike." Roy tried to explain.

"Yeah, so what's the big deal?" Johnny still didn't realize what Roy was trying to tell him.

"Johnny, you're my best friend. When you tried to ask me what was wrong I cut you off and left you out. I wasn't ready to talk about it. But then Mike found out everything before you did. I'm sorry I didn't talk to you."

Johnny _was_ feeling a little crushed at the realization, but he understood his friend had not left him out on purpose. He looked thoughtfully at his friend a moment before speaking. "Roy, let me tell you something. We've been friends a long time now. I know you well enough to know when something is eating at you and that if you don't talk about it you really let it get to you until you make yourself and everyone around you miserable." Roy looked at Johnny while biting his lower lip again. He didn't like to hear stuff like this, but deep down he knew Johnny spoke the truth. "I wasn't happy that you wouldn't talk about it, but I know I'd have gotten it out of you eventually. And I know Mike was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. At least it was Stoker and not Kelley! Stoker'll keep it to himself."

"Ain't that the truth," agreed Roy. "I would hate to see what would happen if Chet got involved. But Johnny, there's more to the story than just that she's my sister."

"Yeah? So tell me." Johnny said.

Roy proceeded to tell his friend all that had occurred at lunch and the story of Sam's tumultuous childhood and how their mother had deceived them both. "And now, I'm just afraid she's gotten herself into something she maybe shouldn't have and that she might not know how to get out of it," he finished.

"What do you mean? The Fire Department?" asked Johnny.

"Yeah, I think she joined for all the wrong reasons and that she'd never admit it and she'd be afraid I would be disappointed in her if she quit."

"Well Roy, I read an article about her in the paper. From what I can tell, she's shown herself to be very competent."

"Yeah, well maybe. We'll see. But even if she is, that doesn't mean it is the right fit for her." Roy looked up and saw Joanne standing in the doorway, smiling at them. "Oh, hi honey. Lunch ready?"

"Sure is. I _think_ I did a competent job of it, but I am not sure if it will taste good!" She winked at her husband. She wanted him to know she had heard his comments about his sister and she did not agree with his reasoning. Johnny grinned, realizing what Jo was up to and not wanting anything to do with that conversation.

"Uh, I'm gonna go wash up." He said, making a hasty exit.

Roy sent an unhappy look Joanne's direction. "Honey, I'm not saying women can't do this. I'm just saying I don't think Sam is doing this for the right reasons."

"Roy DeSoto, who gave you the right to decide for your grown up sister what is right for her or not? You're just being an over protective big brother!"

Roy's eyes dropped to his shoes. He knew she was right. But he still couldn't help how he felt. If people did this kind of work for the wrong reasons, they could easily make mistakes. Mistakes could cost lives. One had to commit fully to this line of work; half way would not cut it. Instead of engage in what potentially could be world war three, Roy simply said, "I'll go track down the kids for lunch."

Joanne smiled at him. He was _so_ predictable at times. "Chicken."

***Sorry it took so long to post this chapter. Sometimes chapters have to be written to bridge story lines and I find those to be difficult chapters to write. Also my job has kept me very busy! As always, thanks for reading and for those who take the extra minute or two to comment, I really appreciate it. Feel free to point out any flaws, especially in regards to character or story lines. I don't always like constructive criticism, but I try to take it well. And I appreciate those brave enough to give it! Happy reading! Hotflash**


	12. Chapter 12

**Everything Changes**

Chapter 12

Sam woke up the next morning a half hour earlier than she ordinarily would have. She needed to stop by 110's and pick up some blue flares as she had promised Chet and Marco on her last shift. _ I wonder what they use the blue flares for_.

After showering, brushing her teeth and having two cups of strong coffee, she put her uniform on, grabbed her duffel, two extra uniforms and her purse and headed out the door. She arrived at Station 110 about 40 minutes before the shift change. Not knowing what kind of reception she would get, she took a deep breath and let it out slowly before entering the station. At first she did not see anyone so she wandered around until she found the day room and there at the table was Captain McGinnis and his engineer, sipping coffee. As she entered, Captain McGinnis looked up and frowned. He was most definitely _not_ an advocate for female fire fighters.

"Can I help you?" he asked in a not too friendly sounding voice.

"Uh, Captain…" She didn't remember his name.

"McGinnis. What can I do for you?

"Captain McGinnis, I'm Sam Anderson, from 51's. I was instructed to stop by here and pick up some blue flares?" She said it like a question.

"Are you asking me or telling me, Boot?" he asked.

Sam felt her cheeks flush and her blood pressure rise from embarrassment and anger. "Sir, I was instructed to pick up blue flares at this station on my way into 51's this morning. I believe Firefighter Lopez called and made the arrangements during the last A-shift."

"Right, I remember seeing a memo on that from their captain." He turned to his engineer. "Johnson, go show her where we keep 'em."

"Yes sir, Cap." The engineer got up from the table and walked her out to a supply closet in the bay. He opened the door and started looking around. "Here are the regular flares. Where did the blue ones go?" he said as he shuffled things around on the shelves. There were two plain brown boxes on the floor under the lowest shelf with the word "CAUTION" stenciled on in blue letters. "Oh, here they are. You can take one case and replace it when 51's supply order comes in." With that he stood up and walked back to the day room.

"Friendly bunch," Sam said out loud, but nobody was there to hear her. She opened the top box and looked inside. Sure enough there were two-dozen blue flares in the box. She reached into the box and took one out to look at it. It looked kind of funny, kind of glossy almost. Shrugging, she put it back in the box, picked up the case, shut the supply closet and headed back to her car. After opening her door she reached over and set the case of flares on the passenger seat. "Who'd have thought?" She said to no one. This talking to no one was getting to be a habit. She opened the box back up and took another look before closing it and starting her car. "Hmmm," she said.

It was about fifteen minutes before the shift change when Sam pulled into 51's. Marco, Chet, Mike and Johnny were all there already, and surprisingly, they were all in uniform already, bantering back and forth in the locker room. Sam stood by the doorway and hearing their voices, she shouted, "Hey Kelley, Lopez, I picked up your flares for you." The four men looked at each other. Johnny and Mike didn't know anything about the prank that Marco and Chet had set up.

"What the…?" said Mike.

Chet and Marco's eyes were filled with evil glee. "Watch this!" said Chet. "Just follow our lead!"

The two firefighters stepped out of the locker room followed closely by the engineer and a paramedic.

"Well, where are they?" asked Chet.

Showing Chet the box she was holding she said, "They're right here. They gave me two-dozen. I hope that it's enough."

"In that box?" asked Marco. "That isn't usually how they come packaged."

"Yeah, that box seems a little flimsy," agreed Chet. "Are you sure you got the right flares?"

"Yes I'm sure. I checked them myself." She started to set the box down on the floor and open it.

"Wait!" Chet stopped her. "Not here, out there! Are you crazy?" He pointed out side to the back parking lot. Sam thought he was nuts but she picked the box back up and headed outside.

"Chet, I checked them before I picked them up and I looked at them again in the car. These _are _blue flares!" Sam opened the box, while listening to the almost panicked voices of her shift mates.

"That chick is nuts! Did you just say you opened that box in your car? Those things are highly toxic!" The other men joined in, in agreement with Chet, showing looks of concern; their comments expressing their surprise that she would do such a thing."

Marco turned to Johnny. "Johnny, you better put your gloves and gear on and check her out. Make sure she is okay."

"She's gonna have to be decontaminated. Mike, get a hose!" Chet ordered. Johnny grabbed his bunker gear and started suiting up. Mike scrambled for the hose. _How am I going to get out of this? She'll hate me. But the guys are not going to understand if I don't go along with them. _ Mike quickly came up with a plan. He grabbed the hose and started hustling back. Just before he reached Sam he _accidentally_ tripped and fell.

Roy had just arrived and unwittingly stumbled upon the scenario. "What is going on?" he asked just as Mike hit the pavement.

"Roy, grab the hose. Sam needs decontamination, quick!" shouted Chet. Alarmed, Roy grabbed the hose and scurried towards Sam.

"Sam, stand up, let me hose you off!" he ordered. He started the shower, ordering her to turn around slowly as he thoroughly hosed her off. Sam was truly in a near panic now, not realizing fully what was going on. Everyone was freaking out and insisting she needed decontamination. She knew she would have to remove her clothing in case it was contaminated as well. She took her uniform shirt off and her pants as well, after kicking off her shoes. She continued turning around slowly being showered by her big brother, with all of A-shift present, excluding Captain Stanley who was still in his office in a closed door meeting with the previous shift's captain. The guys from the previous shift were all standing around watching the show as well. Roy finally shut the water off.

Sam stood there dripping wet looking like a drowned rat in just her tank top and gym shorts. "What the hell happened?" asked Roy. Suddenly he realized that 8 men were standing around in various stages of laughter or at least smirks. He had gotten himself sucked into a prank. "Oh hell!" he said.

The realization hit Sam a second later and she saw the look of anger on Roy's face as the horror of what had just happened to her began to sink in. "Kelley!! Lopez!!" she hollered at the two instigators. But before she could say anything else, the klaxons sounded.

"Saved by the bell!" Chet smirked.

**Squad 51, man down. 1456 Mountianview Drive, cross street Summit. 1-4-5-6 Mountainview Drive, Time out 7:59**

Johnny high-tailed it back inside, took down the address and acknowledged dispatch. "10-4 LA, Squad 51 responding. KMG-365"

Roy grabbed Sam by the arm shouting; "Move!" and half dragged her into the bay until she gathered her senses enough to respond on her own. She stepped into her boots, pulled up the pants and pulled her suspenders over her shoulders, threw her coat in one of the compartments and slid into the seat, putting on her helmet. Johnny slid in beside her. Roy was already in, helmet on and engine started up. As soon as Johnny closed the door he was pulling out.

The two Captains walked out of the office just as the squad pulled away. Both surveyed the scene in front of them and knew that whatever the explanation was for the wet floor in the bay and the wetter pavement behind the station, it wasn't going to put a smile on their faces. Both Captains, after making eye contact with each of the men, zeroed in on Kelley.

"Kelley, wanna enlighten us as to just what happened out here?"

"Uh, not especially, Cap."

"Kelley, while that may have sounded to you like a request, it was actually an order, you twit. Now, out with it… ALL of it!"

When Chet finished stammering through his version of the incident both captains looked very un-amused. Hank Stanley didn't have any idea how he was going to handle this situation just yet. He decided to let his silence on the matter speak louder than words, for the moment. "I suggest you twits get this mess cleaned up on the double. Roll call is in 5 minutes and I don't want to hear a peep out of any of you before then." The men of A-shift scrambled off quickly to follow their captain's orders. The C-shift crew just looked at their captain, hoping he wasn't angry with them as well. He looked at his men and saw they were all looking to him for direction.

"Men, were any of you in any way involved in this unfortunate situation beyond the role of spectator?" Each man either shook their head or gave a quick, "No Sir!"

"In that case, go now! And I hope you will carefully consider over your days off just how this kind of incident could impact the entire department. Dismissed!" As his men scrambled out to their cars he turned to Hank and said, "I don't envy you, Hank. Good luck to you. Oh, and… I'm glad it is you and not me!" With that he slapped Hank on the back and then turned to make his own leave.

Captain Stanley walked slowly over to where his men would be lined up awaiting roll call and duty assignments. He looked over each man carefully, making eye contact for about 20 seconds with each one. He wanted to see what their eyes might reveal. He could see blatant guilt in Kelley's eyes and nothing else. In Lopez' eyes he saw guilt and some shame. In his engineer's eyes he saw shame and nothing else. That alone told him that Kelley instigated, Lopez helped set it up and Stoker participated to some degree and felt nothing but remorse for having done so. He thought very carefully about what he would say before he spoke.

"As your Captain, I don't need to remind you that we are all supposed to be professionals. While there is a certain amount of leeway given in breaking in a new recruit, there are unwritten and unspoken boundaries that should never be crossed. I don't need to remind you that the addition of Sam Anderson to our family here, to our entire department comes with it's own unique set of issues and challenges. I am deeply disappointed in the example you have set for the rest of the department in dealing with those issues and challenges. That said, I will meet with each of you individually to discuss the consequences of your actions. I expect that you won't disappoint me again. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, Captain." Three voices answered back in unison.

"Good. Now for duty assignments: Stoker, you will be our chef today and responsible for the day room. Lopez and Kelley you will be responsible for putting away the dry hoses and cleaning and hanging any hose from our shift. In addition, Kelley, you have the honors of cleaning the latrine. Gage and DeSoto will clean the bay and the dorms respectively and Anderson will assist the chef, wash the dishes and clean the ovens and refrigerator. She will also handle the school tour that is due here at 1:30, as long as the squad is here. In her absence, Stoker, you will lead the tour. Now, if there are no questions you are dismissed."

Chet and Marco made a hasty retreat to the hose tower but Mike stayed behind, willing to risk the wrath of his Captain for a chance to discuss his perspective of the situation. Hank waited until his two linemen were out of earshot before addressing his engineer. "Mike?"

"Uh, Cap, I ah, I just wanted to tell you I'm real sorry for my involvement in what took place here this morning. I take full responsibility for my actions." He thought about telling his captain how he hadn't really wanted to participate but he knew it would sound lame to say he did it so he wouldn't let his buddies down. "And I think you should know something else."

"What is it Stoker?" inquired Hank.

"Well, sir, Roy… he didn't know what was going on. He kind of walked in in the middle of it and I think he thought it was a real emergency. I don't think he realized it was a prank until after it was over."

"I see," said Hank. "You're sure about this?"

"Yes sir, I am pretty sure he couldn't have known." Mike proceeded to tell Hank the story from his point of view, including what was happening when Roy drove in and how he had _accidentally_ fallen with the hose and Chet had directed Roy to decontaminate Sam. He ended with, "Cap, I'm really sorry. I knew about the set up, but I never knew it would go this far. I should have stopped it."

"Mike, we all make mistakes. I believe you are sincerely remorseful for your actions and inactions and I hope you have learned from this. I think the logical consequences of your part in this are that you are to keep an eye and an ear on Kelley and a thumb if necessary, and keep the twit from pranking himself out of a home in this department."

"Yes sir. Thank you." Mike was grateful his captain had been so merciful in assigning consequences. Inside though, it made him feel even worse about what he had allowed to happen. He knew as the next in command that he should have set the example. He shook hands with his captain, turned and walked away.

"One down, four to go," sighed Hank, retreating to his office. It was time for a couple of aspirin and it wasn't even an hour into the shift.

It was almost an hour later when Hank heard the squad back into the stall. Roy had been kind enough to crank the heat up to help Sam dry off after the patient had been safely delivered to Rampart Emergency. She had thrown her gear in a compartment and rode back in just her shorts and tank top. Captain Stanley met them as the piled out of the squad.

"Anderson, hit the shower. I'll stand the squad down for one half hour for you to get showered, cleaned up and in uniform. Then I want to see you in my office."

"Yes, sir. Thank you Captain Stanley."

"You're welcome," Hank told her as she trudged off to the shower.

"Gage," he said turning to his junior paramedic. "My office, please. And DeSoto, you're assigned to the dorm and I will speak to you when I finish with John."

"Right, Cap." He said, heading off to his assignment.

Hank stepped into his office and closed the door behind him. Johnny was already sitting in the seat opposite the business side of the desk, with his arms crossed, his long legs stretched out in front of him crossed at the ankles and his head down. Hank seated himself behind his desk and looked at the younger member of his paramedic team whose head stayed down until he was addressed. "Excuse me a moment, John. I'll be right with you." Hank made the call to stand down the squad for a half hour and then addressed his dark haired paramedic.

"John, you okay pal?" Hank knew his disappointment in John would be enough to cause him to grow from the experience of this morning. He didn't need to be harsh.

John looked up and made eye contact with his superior. "I'm fine Cap. I just…" He didn't quite know what he meant to say, but the words were not coming to him.

"Just what, John?" Hank asked, non-threateningly.

"I just… I just didn't know things would get so out of hand."

"I know John. Why don't you just start from the beginning?" Hank listened patiently while Johnny gave his take on the events of the morning. After discussing the situation and the minor role John had played in it, Hank let John off with a verbal warning and sent him out to complete his assigned duties. "Tell Roy I'm ready for him, please," he said to Johnny on his way out.

"Right Cap. I'll get him."

Roy stood at the entrance to the office and knocked lightly on the doorframe. "You wanted to see me, Cap?"

"Roy, come in, Pal. Close the door and have a seat."

Roy sat and promptly started biting his lower lip without even realizing it. He waited for his boss to speak.

"Roy, now I understand you arrived on the scene as the prank was already unfolding is that correct?"

"Well, yeah I guess so." He certainly didn't realize at the time that it was a prank in progress.

"The other men have explained to me their versions of what happened and I think I have a pretty good idea of what went down and how. I know that you were unaware that you were not walking into a true emergency. Is that accurate so far?"

"Yeah Cap. But that's no excuse…"

"Roy, let me finish," Cap interrupted. Roy sat looking him in the eye, silent once again. "I don't think you made any errors in judgement. You responded to what you thought to be a true emergency and you handled the situation as such. I don't feel any disciplinary action is called for. I would like to ask a favor of you though."

"What ever you need, Cap," responded the senior paramedic.

"I want you to help Sam fit in and help her become part of the team. I know it won't be easy and I don't even know what to tell you about how to do it, just… do your best for me, will you?"

"Of course, Cap. "I'll do all I can."

"I'm counting on it, Roy. We don't need a lawsuit and it's in all of our best interests to make the teamwork well together. I don't need to tell _you_ that, though."

"Thanks, Cap. Is there anything else you need from me, or may I be excused?"

"Go on, Pal, that's all." Roy left the office and went back to finish his assigned chores.

A short while later, Sam stood at the office door, freshly showered and wearing a clean uniform. She knocked softly on the doorframe. "Cap, you wanted to see me?" she said, unknowingly echoing the words of her brother, almost verbatim.

"Sam, come in," he said standing up. Sam came in and he directed her to a chair as he himself stood up and closed the door.

"Are you feeling better?" he asked her as he sat back down.

"Well, I'm warm and dry if that's what you mean." She answered.

He smiled at his paramedic trainee. "I wanted to apologize on behalf of the entire crew for the poor judgement and disrespect they showed this morning."

"Don't worry about it Captain. It was only water. No harm was done." Sam said, stoically.

"Yes, Sam, it was only water, but I don't agree on the no harm done part. It certainly didn't serve to build respect or foster teamwork within my crew. Wouldn't you agree?"

"I can see your point, Sir." She said, answering carefully.

"What I'm trying to say is, I think the behavior of the team was unacceptable and I do not intend to tolerate the type of behavior you experienced today. I want you to know that my door is always open for all my me… uh... crew." _Mental note to self, stop referring to the team as "men." "_If you feel that the generally good natured pranking goes beyond reasonable boundaries, if you feel you are being harassed, I want you to inform me as soon as possible."

"I appreciate it, Cap. But, "I am a big girl now. I can take whatever they dish out. Don't worry, I'm not going to run out and file charges for harassment every time they treat me like a boot. I AM the boot. We'll all get over it in a little while. In the mean time, I'll just have to prove myself to them. Don't worry, Captain, cause I'm not worried about it at all."

"Very well then. I guess that is all. Just remember, my door is always open, like I said." Hank replied.

"Thank you, I will keep that in mind she said," standing up to leave. She left in silence. Somehow the silence was deafening to Hank and he wished the pounding in his head would stop.

*Thanks for reading my story. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I had fun writing it. Please take just a minute and share your thoughts with me. Click that green button below and make me smile! (Even if it is to point out a flaw, I won't mind.)

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	13. Chapter 13

Everything Changes

Chapter 13

It was an unusual day for the A-shift crew. Usually, the squad went out on calls at least 3-1 over the engine crew. More during holiday seasons. Today, the squad wasn't particularly busy but the engine crew went out on several minor calls. It gave the three paramedics a chance to talk about how the morning had started off.

"Sam, I'm sorry about this morning. I had no idea when I pulled up…"

"Roy, I know you didn't. But you have to stop being such a big brother!"

He looked at her, surprised at her statement. "What do you mean?"

"You can't possibly think that I believe for one second that if it had been anyone else in my place you wouldn't have taken just a small second to assess the situation before you jumped in like that? If you had you would have seen all of C-shift standing around watching the whole freak show."

"She has a point, Roy…" Johnny joined in but stopped with the look that Roy shot him.

"Well why didn't you say anything? Why'd you let me hose you off? And I didn't tell you to strip. You did that all on your own." Roy was feeling defensive.

"Because. I was stuck in the middle of it. I didn't have a chance to even notice them. Chet and Marco had me. They suckered me good!"

"Yeah they did…" Johnny joined the conversation again, but Sam's glare stopped him mid sentence as well.

"Yeah, well, I guess that makes two of us." Roy smiled feeling a little more relaxed now that Sam was admitting she too had been fooled. "I didn't know it was all about blue flares or I would have known it was a prank. I kind of helped engineer that one for a probie at 46's, only it never got carried out. I don't know _how_ Chet found out about it. And I can't believe he got McGinnis to go along."

"You know what? It's no big deal. They treated my like a boot and I _am_ the boot. At least they are reacting and not ignoring me. Maybe that's a good sign. But really, Roy… You have to stop trying to protect me."

"I'm not trying to protect you. I thought you were in trouble. I would've done the same thing for Johnny, or any of the guys."

"Yeah, and now you're hacked off at the guys for doing it."

"You bet I am. They suckered me in."

"Yeah, but that's not why you're mad. You're mad they suckered ME in." She stared him in the eye as she said it. He stared back but he knew she was right and she'd read it in his eyes for sure. She always could read him.

"Fine. Maybe you're right… to some degree anyway… But I've been your big brother for a lot longer than I've been a fireman. I can't help feeling protective of you."

"Hey you two," Johnny bravely interrupted. The two looked at him. _Oh boy, now I've done it. They're gonna kill me for sure after this. _"This may be none of my business, but… as your friend, Roy, and because I think it's important, don't you think you should let the big guys on top know about the two of you? I mean, Roy, if you're having trouble with the big brother thing, what happens if we have a serious problem out there?"

"Like what?" asked Roy, again sounding defensive.

"I don't know, but say… you or Sam got into trouble. How would the other of you react? I mean if it were serious, would you both be able to stay objective? Would you make the right decisions? And could you live with yourselves if you did. I mean what if you had to choose between a victim and each other?" Johnny knew this was going to be rough, but they had to think about this. He didn't want his best friend getting in trouble for keeping the information from the department and he knew doing so wouldn't help Sam any either. He could see that both of his partners had taken on defensive posture and their coloring was a definite red.

"Johnny, have I ever made decisions as a paramedic based on emotions?" Roy demanded.

"Gage, you don't even know me yet. How can you say that?" Sam snapped.

"Whoa! Wait a minute!" Johnny defended himself. "I'm not saying either of you would make the wrong choice or make any choice for the wrong reasons. I'm just saying it's something to think about. Besides, you know sooner or later it's gonna come out. These kinds of things always do. It sure isn't going to go well for either of you if you don't bring it to light yourselves. That's all I'm saying."

The sound of the bay door opening followed by the engine backing in effectively ended the conversation. The three paramedics all sat down at the table, fresh cups of coffee in front of them and waited for the rest of the crew to file in. One by one they did as they each had taken their turn to wash up a little first.

Mike was the first to enter. "Hey, how's it been around here?" he asked.

"Fine. Quiet as a library." Sam answered him. The air was still a little thick from the previous conversation and Mike could feel it.

"Everything okay?" he asked.

"Fine and dandy. Everything is just peachy." Roy said it with sarcasm dripping from the corners of his mouth.

"Sam, you wanna give me a hand?" Mike asked. He didn't want to know what he walked into. He just wanted to make lunch, serve it and walk back out of it.

Sam got up from the table, washed her hands at the sink and waited for his instructions. As she was getting ready to help, he took ingredients out of the refrigerator. "Will you please wash and cut the lettuce, tomatoes and onions? I'm making taco salads."

"Sure."

Marco no sooner walked into the day room than Captain Stanley called him back out. "Hey, Marco. I'd like to see you in my office please."

_Oh boy, here it comes. _Marco had been expecting it all day. He was actually relieved Cap was calling him in now. His silence had been agonizing. He walked into the captain's office and closed the door.

"Have a seat."

Marco sat and waited for Hank to speak. Hank waited to speak for effect. Finally he broke the silence. "So tell me, in your own words, what the hell happened, including any and all events leading up to this morning?"

Marco explained about how he and Chet had set Sam up the previous shift. He pointed out that he never asked her to run the errand; that she had volunteered. He explained that he had no idea what would happen at the other end of the gag. He also explained that he had not expected her to strip in the parking lot. He didn't push the blame on Chet to get it off of himself. He took responsibility for his actions.

After Marco explained his point of view Captain Stanley explained how behavior like that could be misinterpreted and cause problems for the department. It was a frustrating point to explain because on the one hand he was telling his men not to treat Sam any differently than any other new recruit and on the other he was telling them they had to make special considerations because she was a woman.

"I guess what I'm saying is, it's one thing to prank and break in a new recruit, but think carefully of the possible outcomes first. Make sure that nothing could be misinterpreted as a gender bias issue. Pranks should be fun, but not harassing in nature. A male recruit stripping for decontamination would not be such a big deal, maybe. But Sam, that was another story. Fortunately for you and for me, she doesn't seem to be particularly upset about it. But she could have made all kinds of claims."

"You are right, Captain and I am sorry. I accept full responsibility for my part in it."

"Good. I trust you will use better judgment in the future. And, as a disciplinary measure I am suspending you for two shifts without pay, effective for the next two immediate shifts."

"Yes sir, I understand." Marco answered with his head hung down. He was ashamed that he might have brought shame to his department and also that he had let his captain down.

"That's all. You may go. And please, send Chet in here, will ya, Pal?"

The "Pal" on the end of Cap's sentence was music to Marco's ears. It told him that the Cap wasn't personally mad at him, that he wouldn't hold a grudge. It was the Captains subtle way of telling his fireman that things would blow over and be all right again soon.

Chet popped his head tentatively into the captain's office. "You wanted to see me, Sir?"

"Come in and close the door… Sit down." Chet did as he was told. He knew by the look on Cap's face this wasn't going to be pleasant.

"Kelley, I've already heard everyone's version of what happened this morning, and how it all started. I called you in here not to further investigate, but rather to educate you." He went on to explain the possible implications to the department as he had to the other men. Then he started citing cases that had come up recently in fire departments across the country in dealing with the issues of integrating women into the ranks. When he finished with that he ripped the lineman a new one about his lack of judgment and knack for taking things too far. Finally he started to wind down.

"Kelley, before I tell you what your consequences are going to be I want you to know something. You are an excellent fireman. You work hard, you study hard, you work well with the team in a crisis. You are an important part of our team here. I don't want you to throw away a great career because of a lack of judgment in regards to interpersonal relationships. That said you have the next two shifts off to think long and hard about that, without pay. And you are on probation for three months. Anything over the line when it comes to pranks and you will face the Chief Engineer himself. When you come back to work I expect to see a new Chet Kelley. One who works hard with sound decisions and one who plays hard with sound decisions. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes sir, perfectly clear." Hank could hear the remorse in Chet's voice. Clearly he didn't mean to cause shame to the department or his captain and clearly this was not an event that occurred on the basis of gender. Hank was relieved to finally know that much for sure.

"Then you are dismissed."

*Okay, I've dealt with all the discipline now. Now you can be watching for some real action! Thanks for reading. Please leave me a comment or two. Reviews make the long hours writing worth it. :D Hotflash


	14. Chapter 14

The crew of 51's were asleep, that is, all but one of them. It had been a relatively uneventful day and that had been a nice change for them. Their last several shifts had been quite busy. They were over due for a quiet one. With the sounds of snoring in the background, Roy was lost deep in his own thoughts. He had too much on his mind to be able to sleep. He had so many mixed feelings about Sam. He knew he would deal with his feelings eventually, but right now what was bothering him most was that the two of them were withholding their relationship from the department.

Roy doubted that their relationship would prove to be a problem as far as training went. And there wasn't an opening at 51's so it wasn't like there was any chance of them becoming partners. That position was already permanently filled. But still, it was wrong not to inform the department that they were siblings. Worse, two others already knew and that would not go over well with the brass if they found out through the grape vine. Even though Sam had been the one to with hold the information, Roy knew that ethically, he would have to speak up. The way he figured it, with Sam being new and with all the publicity surrounding her arrival to the department, it would go over better coming from him. He made up his mind. _I'll speak to Cap first thing in the morning. _That decision finally clear in his mind, he felt himself start to relax and finally he drifted off to sleep.

**Station 51, Station 36, Truck 8, Engine 10, Battalion 14 Structure fire 25417 Murdock Avenue. 2-5-4-1-7 Murdock Avenue, Cross street Butterworth Time out 3:04.**

The klaxons sounded, the lights went on and the announcement blared loud throughout the station. The crew all jumped up, stepped into their boots and pulled their suspenders up over their shoulders as they ran out to the bay. Captain Stanley acknowledged the call and recorded the address. He handed a slip to Roy and jumped into the engine. The squad pulled out first with the engine right behind, sirens blaring.

Hank Stanley began his size-up of the scene as he hopped out of the truck before they had even rolled to a stop. It was a two story wooden taxpayer with heavy smoke billowing out of the rear exits. Before he could even wonder if all of the occupants had made it out safely, the apartment manager came running towards him.

"Please, you gotta do something!" shouted a balding, pot-bellied man in blue plaid boxers and a grubby tank top that might have been white once. He looked to be about fifty five-ish.

Hank instinctively put his hand out, palm forward to keep a little personal space between himself and the man. "Whoa, slow down. Are you alright?" he asked.

"Yeah, man, I'm okay, but I don't think Mrs. Manke and her daughter came out. I can't find them! You can't leave them in there by themselves! They'll die! You gotta do something!"

"Now calm down, sir. We're working on that right now." Hank put a reassuring hand on the man's shoulder in an effort to calm him down. "DeSoto, Gage, Anderson," he shouted over his shoulder. Turning back to the pot-bellied man he said, "These firefighters are going to make a search so I want you to tell them exactly where Mrs. Manke and her daughter might be, okay?"

The man shook his head with eyes wide and almost bulging out from excitement and fear. Sam reached him first. "Tell me about the missing people," she said. What are their names, how old are they and which apartment is theirs?" DeSoto and Gage were standing with her waiting on the man's answer before Sam even finished asking the question.

"It's Mrs. Manke and her daughter, Sara. She's seven. They're in the top apartment to the right of the north stairwell. It's number 2-B. _Hurry_!" the man explained as a fireman with a shoulder load of hose hustled past them, another fireman hustled along side of him.

"All right, now you just wait out here and we'll go find them", said Roy, steering the man toward an officer who was working crowd control. The three rescuers hastily pulled their masks into place and rushed into the building behind Lopez and Kelley who were already knocking down flames. Roy was the last to enter the building, having stopped briefly to inform his captain of where they would be focusing their search.

As they entered, Roy's stomach suddenly felt sour. The acrid black smoke was so thick they could barely see each other as they ascended the stairs. Roy reached out and grabbed hold of Sam's arm to keep her near himself. Sam followed suit, reaching out for Johnny's arm and the three of them snaked their way to the top. The smoke grew thicker and the environment hotter as they climbed. By the time they reached the landing the smoke was so thick the rescuers could barely see their hands in front of their faces.

Johnny felt along the wall for a door. When he found it he felt for heat with the back of his hand. Then he tried to open it.

"It's locked. We're gonna have to force it." He shouted through his mask.

"I got it." Roy shouted back and the other two stepped aside. Roy gave a good kick to the door and it gave way. It only opened about six inches and bounced off something, closing again. "Something's blocking it." Roy shouted through his mask.

Sam opened the door again and peered inside. She thought she could see a blob on the floor through the smoke. "I think there's a person on the floor." She immediately began shucking her SCBA.

"What do you think you're doing?" demanded Roy.

Already choking on the thick smoke she managed to explain between coughs. "It's the only way to fit through the door. I'll get in, check it out and clear the doorway." Sam squeezed through the doorway and knelt down to the blob on the floor. It was a woman. She took off her glove and felt for a pulse. She didn't find one. She immediately gave two rescue breaths to the victim then quickly she pulled the woman back a few feet giving her partners access to the room. They pushed inside and slammed the door shut behind them to try and keep some of the smoke away.

Sam's eyes and nose were running as the smoke assaulted them. Her lungs burned in protest of the lack of clean air. She gave two more breaths and before she had completed them, Roy was pulling on her arm, trying to get her to put her SCBA back on. Johnny grabbed her other arm and the two firemen pulled her up to her feet. Roy held the tank while Johnny helped her into the straps and got the mask to her face. She took several breaths trying to make her lungs stop burning. Already she was lightheaded and dizzy from eating too much smoke.

"We've gotta find the girl," shouted Johnny. "I'll stay and work on her." Sam and Roy began a search of the apartment. They crawled their way along the room, each heading toward opposite walls. Sam found a table and swept her arms under it, shouting as she searched.

"Hello! Fire Department… Is anybody there?" Not hearing any response and not feeling anything she moved on. She continued checking the room and shouting until she was sure it was clear and she found a doorway to a bedroom. She began checking the bedroom in the same way.

Roy was also searching, a feeling of dread welling up inside of him. Usually he didn't feel anything while searching. He did what he had to do and nothing else even came to his mind but this time he couldn't help thinking something bad was going to happen. He came to a doorway and went through it. It was a bedroom and he kept crawling over toys. He made his way to the bed. It was empty. Looking underneath it he called out. "Fire Department. Can you hear me?" He reached under and swept the air space. He didn't find anyone there. Moving on he headed toward the closet.

Johnny had begun CPR on his patient. He had done several cycles of breathing and chest compressions to no avail. Just when he thought it was no use, she began coughing. He placed his mask over her face. "Now calm down, just try to breathe deeply. You're gonna be all right… that's it, just breathe." He was having a hard time himself through the thick smoke and did plenty of hacking and coughing of his own. He had to get her out of here and fast. He had noticed it getting hotter and hotter in the apartment. He knew he had to find a way out. The hall was not going to be an option. The sound of fire was getting louder and had to be just outside the door by now.

Johnny slid his arms underneath the woman and lifted her up. On his knees in order to stay as low as possible he moved across the room toward the exterior wall. He set her back down gently. "Don't worry, I'm gonna get us out of here!" He said to her. About that time she started to become more alert. She sat bolt upright throwing the mask aside. "My baby! Where's my baby?"

Johnny grabbed the mask and took a long deep breath of air. "Don't worry. Calm down. My partners will find her. They're looking for her right now." He took another quick breath and then thrust the mask back at her. "Breathe!"

Johnny was worried that he hadn't seen or heard from his partners yet. He knew they had to get out and soon. He quickly un-strapped his SCBA so that he could move more freely and still let his victim breathe. Feeling around he found a floor lamp. He picked it up and used it to break out the window, stuck his head out and took a long deep breath. Looking down he could see that the glass breaking out had already caught the attention of the truckies and already they were scrambling to get the ladder in place. Johnny took another breath of air then turned around and went for his victim.

"Okay now," we'll have you outta here in a shake," he said. "We're gonna take you down a ladder."

"No! No! I won't go without my baby." The woman screamed and tried to shove Johnny away from her.

Johnny held up his hands saying, "Whoa, wait a minute. Now listen. I can't help my partners find your daughter until I get you out of here safely. Now there's another fireman coming up this ladder to help you down. The sooner you're out the sooner I can help look for her."

The woman seemed confused for a moment but then a fireman with a number 8 on his helmet poked his head in the window and said, "let's go!"

Johnny reached out to the woman and she didn't resist, much to his relief. He helped her out the window and over the shoulder of the fireman on the ladder. As the fireman started down Johnny shouted to him, "I gotta find the others. Come back for us." The fireman gave him a nod and continued his descent.

Johnny turned back inside the room and started crawling the floor along the walls. He needed to find his partners and hopefully they had found the little girl by now. As he made his way along the wall the building started making an awful groaning noise. It was a sound he knew all too well. He felt the vibrations under his knees as the building began to shake.

Sam had almost completed a search of the bedroom when she found another door. She pushed through the door and crawled in, her knees felt the soft squish of a wet towel that had been put along the edge of the door. Bingo. _She's gotta be here! _The hard floor of the bathroom felt cool to her hands. She felt along the walls and opened the sink cabinet looking for the missing little girl. Children and elderly people often hid from fire making rescue efforts that much more difficult. She knew she was running out of time. She felt the smooth edges of a bathtub and feeling up the side of it she came to the sliding glass doors. She opened them and shouted again. "Fire Department. Is anybody in here?"

Sam barely heard the small voice. "Help me. I'm scared."

"It's gonna be okay sweetheart. I'm gonna take care of you." Sam said to her, taking off her mask. The smoke hadn't reached the bathroom too heavily yet. Just then the floor began to shake and the building made an awful groaning noise. The little girl let out a scream and covered her ears with her hands. Sam reached out and put her hand on the little girl's shoulder to calm her down. She put the mask over the girls face and told her to take a breath. "It's okay. I'm right here with you."

Sam continued to reassure the girl while she tried to think. _What is the best way to get her out of here? _The bathroom had no exterior walls. There were no windows. Sam turned and closed the door behind them to slow the smoke. She pushed the towel back into the crack beneath it. Just then the building let out another grown followed by a thunderous crashing noise and lots of shaking. The little girl screamed again and jumped into Sam's arms looking for protection as her whole world was crashing around her. Plaster bits pelted the two and Sam hunched over the little girl to protect her.

Roy had cleared the closet and the rest of the child's bedroom. He was just crawling back into the living quarters of the apartment when the ground shook violently and the building groaned loudly before an earth shattering crash was heard and felt. Part of the building had collapsed. When the shaking stopped Roy realized he was still there, in once piece and silently thanked God. _Sam, Johnny! _Roy was determined to find his partners and get them out of this hell before it was too late. He scrambled through the room toward the exterior wall. On his way he found Johnny, heading his direction.

"Roy!" Johnny shouted.

"Where's Sam?" he shouted back.

"**HT 51 COME IN!" **Johnny reached into his coat pocket and pulled out the radio.

"HT 51" Johnny said into the radio.

"John, are you guys all right up there?" Captain Stanley asked, strain in his voice.

"Affirmative. Roy and I are okay. We got separated from Sam. We're looking for her now. She was searching for the child."

"Negative! No time. The building has partially collapsed. Get out! Get out now!" John could hear in his captain's voice the agony of having to evacuate with a man left behind.

Another voice came over the radio. "All personnel evacuate the building immediately. I repeat... all personnel evacuate the building immediately. That's an order!" The Battalion Chief in charge made himself very clear.

"Johnny, I can't…" Roy started to say.

"Roy, you _have_ to. Jo and the kids _need_ you. Now come _on_!" He grabbed Roy's arm and pulled with all his might, nearly flinging his partner up to the opening of the window.

Johnny didn't like leaving Sam behind any more than Roy did, but he knew there was no choice. He hoped she had found the child and exited the building already. "Maybe she's already out!" he shouted to encourage his partner. Even he didn't believe it.

Roy shook his head and stuck it out the window. The ladder was being moved away from the window at that moment. Captain Stanley was looking up at the window, willing his firemen to be there. When he saw Roy he ordered the crew to be ready with the net below, his heart filled with relief. Roy saw he would have to jump and removed his SCBA then positioned himself to do so, waiting for his captain's command. "Jump!" came the command.

Roy hated exiting this way. It would be the second time in his career that he had to do it. He guessed it beat the alternative. He took a deep breath and jumped. Johnny was already positioning himself as Roy made his rapid descent. As soon as Roy had cleared the landing spot the firemen holding the net were looking up at Johnny, expectantly. "Now Gage, jump!" he heard his captain order. Glancing back over his shoulder one last time, wishing he had Sam with him, Johnny inhaled deeply and jumped. Even before he landed he could hear the building complaining loudly. As soon as he landed he and all the men holding the net ran for cover away from the building.

The deafening rumble seemed to go on forever as the firemen watched most of the building collapse. Only one section remained standing. Amazingly, it was the north corner.

The crash had been deafening, but somehow Sam hadn't really heard it. All she heard was the screaming of a very frightened seven-year-old girl who was clinging to her for dear life. What she did notice was when it stopped. The air was cooler and the smoke was less thick. The building must have collapsed and the smoke must have found a new escape route. Sam squeezed the little girl gently to reassure her. "It's okay, we're all right,." she said. Her voice was hoarse and she could barely get a sound out. She took the mask from the girl to get another good breath of air before giving it back. The air tasted terrible. She was at the end of her tank. She hoped someone would find them soon. She stood up and reached for the door to the bathroom, opening it slightly. She could feel cool air when she did so and she realized the interior walls to the hallway were gone.

"Come on, sweetie," she croaked, pulling the girl out the doorway with her. Maybe she could find a way out. She walked close to the walls, heading for the exterior wall of the apartment. Much of the smoke had thinned out now that an escape route for it had been created and Sam could see a curtain blowing near the window. She inched her way over to it with the girl hugged close against her body. She stuck her head out and yelled.

"Up here! Can anybody hear me?" Her yell wasn't as loud as she had hoped and her voice was very raspy.

Sam knew no one could hear her. She took off her helmet and threw it out the window as hard as she could. It sailed to the ground and landed near Engine 51, at Mike Stoker's feet. The startled engineer looked up.

"CAP!" he yelled. "It's Sam! Hang on Sam!" Already truck 8 was positioning its ladder to reach the firefighter and the small child. Roy ran to the truck.

"Cap, I'll go." He said to the Captain of 8's as he pointed up the ladder. The captain nodded and Roy climbed up on the truck. He ascended the ladder as quickly as he could. When he got to the top he said to Sam, "Cutting it kind of close, aren't you?" Sam smiled and nodded as she handed the child out to Roy. Roy took hold of the little girl.

"Hi there," he said. "What do you say we get down from here?" The girl nodded and the look of relief on her tearstained face melted Roy's heart. "All right now. Put your arms around my neck and hold on tight." The very relieved fireman slowly climbed down the ladder, followed by an amazing woman, who also happened to be a firefighter. When they reached the ground, Chet took the little girl to her mother who was loaded up onto a stretcher and about to be placed in an ambulance. He spoke to the paramedic from 36's who was going to ride in with her.

"Here's Sara," he said. "That's her mom. Sara seems to be okay but I think she sure would like to ride in with you and see to it that her mother's okay. I'll bet she'd even agree to let you check her out on the way, won't you sweetheart?" He looked down at the little girl. She looked up at him and nodded.

"Sara, baby." Her mother realized she was there and that she was safe and began to cry with relief. Sara let go of Chet's hand and went to the side of her mother, throwing her arm over her in a hug.

"Okay, let's load up and go see the nice doctor's over at Rampart." The paramedic from 36's assisted the ambulance attendants with loading their patient and her daughter into the back of the ambulance. "You can sit right here, honey. I'm gonna take a look at you and listen to your lungs while we're on our way, okay?" The young girl nodded and sat where she was told. Chet closed the ambulance doors and gave them two loud taps.

With the firefighting strategy changed to "surround and drown" it wasn't long before the flames were knocked down and there was nothing left but a smoking, steaming pile of rubble. There would be several hours of overhaul for some of the companies but 51's was first in and first released by the Battalion Chief.

Roy found his way over to his captain as the crew of 51's was packing up. "Hey Cap?"

Captain Stanley turned from what he was doing and faced his senior paramedic. "Roy, are you three headed to Rampart?" He asked it as a question but Roy knew it was really an order.

"Yeah, Cap. Johnny and Sam ate a lot of smoke. I'll see to it they both get checked out."

"What about you, DeSoto?" Captain Stanley inquired.

"I'm fine, Cap. I didn't eat too much smoke. See you later."

Roy turned and walked over to his partners. "Let's go, you two."

***I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Action is not my thing as far as writing goes but I did my best. Thanks for reading and please, take the extra couple of minutes to leave me a review. I appreciate all comments. If you like something say so, if not, it's okay to let me know that too. Just remember that if you leave comments anonymously or without logging in, I can't thank you or answer any questions you may have. Thanks :D Hotflash**


	15. Chapter 15

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 15**

The squad and its three weary paramedics backed into the station just thirteen minutes before the end of their shift. As they piled out of the squad, their crewmates gathered around to welcome them home.

"Great job, Sam. We all thought you'd bought it, but you saved that little girl." Chet said it with a voice full of humility and adoration for his new "sister". She was one of them as far as he was concerned.

"Si Amiga, you really showed what you're made of. Great job, Chica." Marco added his praise.

"Anderson, I think I can speak for all of us when I say, you did a helluva job today." The praise of her captain made her blush.

Sam put up her hand in a gesture saying, "stop" and with her head downward said to her "brothers" with a raspy voice, "Guys, I appreciate what you're trying to say… I do… but… I don't deserve it. I didn't do anything today that any of you wouldn't have done in my place. We _all_ did a helluva job today. We did it because that is what we were born to do. You guys are an awesome team. But thanks. I'm glad we had this little discussion." She looked up and saw Mike in the back of the group nodding at her and smiling. She made her way past the crew and into the day room.

Sitting around the table was the B-shift, enjoying their coffee and pastries, waiting for roll call. Although her shift mates had gotten somewhat comfortable with Sam the B-shift had no idea how to take her. When she walked in conversation stopped. Nobody looked at anybody. When she approached the coffee pot one of the paramedics jumped up from his seat, got a coffee cup out of the cupboard and handed it to her without looking at her.

"Thanks," she croaked. He nodded in return. Sam took a few sips of her coffee. The awkward silence in the room became too much for her in her exhausted state. After another sip she decided not to stick around. She dumped the rest of her coffee, rinsed her cup and turned to leave. "Well," she said, "It's been nice chatting with you all. Have a great shift." Then she turned and walked out.

"Sounds like she ate a lot of smoke," Sam heard one of them say on her way out.

Sam thought about the conversation she and Roy had with Johnny the morning before. She knew Johnny was right about needing to inform the department of her relationship with Roy. The feeling of acceptance she had gotten from her shift mates made her feel like it was a good time to do so, but then when B-shift had responded to her the way they did, she wasn't so sure. As she passed the office Captain Stanley stepped out leaving the office occupied by the B-shift captain.

"Sam? You all right?" he could see the mixed emotions on her soot covered face.

"Fine, Cap. "I'm just tired… and so looking forward to a shower." It wasn't a lie. It just wasn't the whole truth.

He sensed there was more on her mind than that. "I'm sure you are, Sam. Go home and get some rest. Are you going to Stoker's for the game?"

"I'm not sure yet. Frankly it isn't even on my radar at the moment."

"No …Of course not. Well, drive carefully. Enjoy your break."

"Thanks. Oh… Cap?" She thought she should just say it and get it over with.

"Yes?"

Just then Roy came around the corner and didn't see Sam at first. "Hey, Cap?" Can I talk to you a minute?" Hank put up one finger to signal him to wait a minute and turned back to Sam.

"You wanted to say something?" he asked her.

"Uh, no. Not really. It isn't that important."

"Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt," Roy apologized.

"No, no, I was just heading out. Have a nice break, you two." Sam turned and walked to the locker room, announcing her presence before entering to gather her things.

Roy faced his captain again. "Sorry Cap, it looks like my timing wasn't so good."

"Don't worry about it Roy. What can I do for you?"

"Ah, are you in a hurry to get home?"

"Not any more so than usual. What's on your mind, Pal?"

"I thought maybe we could talk about it over breakfast."

"That serious, huh? You buyin'?"

Roy grinned. "Sure, why not? The Firehouse okay with you?"

"Why not? I've never eaten breakfast there. Is it any good?"

Roy nodded his head. "Do firemen wear suspenders?" he asked in return.

Hank gave Roy an appreciative smile. "I'll meet you there, I've got to call Emily first."

Sam stepped tentatively into the locker room after announcing her presence. She was pretty sure all of A-shift had left and she knew B-shift was in the day room. When she came around the corner to her locker she gave a little yelp of surprise. It was echoed by a more manly sounding yelp. There in front of Sam with his back to her, thankfully, was a naked fireman fresh from a shower and just starting to get dressed. Sam immediately about-faced and started apologizing while the fireman dove for cover behind a row of lockers.

"Oh, I am SO sorry. I didn't know anyone was still here. I'm sorry!" Her embarrassment and her smoke ravaged throat made it difficult to croak the words out.

"My fault! I shoulda been outta here already." The fireman was very glad Sam couldn't see his red face. He wished he could get dressed and crawl out a window rather than face her."

"I announced myself, but I guess it is hard to hear me with my voice almost gone. I'm sorry. I'm not looking. You can get your clothes and get dressed. I'll just wait outside until you're done." She quickly walked out of the locker room, embarrassed beyond belief. She wished she didn't have to go back in but her purse was in her locker and her driver's license and car keys were in it.

After a few minutes a still red faced fireman walked out of the locker room. He had planned to just nod and keep on walking, but Sam reached out and touched his arm. "Mike, I'm so sorry."

"Yeah, me too. Let's just never talk of this, okay?"

Sam grinned. "Okay, except I just wanna say one thing." She knew she shouldn't but she couldn't help herself.

He stared back at her, then nodded once.

"Nice ass!" She said it quickly then turned and entered the locker room, making her escape.

"Thanks for noticing," Mike retorted back then headed out to his truck. He had a lot to do before the game but first he had to satisfy his stomach.

After arriving at the Firehouse, Roy called his wife from the pay phone and let her know what he was up to. Soon he saw Cap pull in to the parking lot. It didn't take long for the hostess to seat them and after looking over the menu Roy and Hank both ordered the "fireman special". It was homemade corned beef hash, with two eggs, toast and seasonal fresh fruit. Coffee came with it as part of the special. Once they had placed their order, Roy got down to business.

"Ah, Cap, there's something I need to tell you. It's pretty important."

"What's on your mind, Pal?"

Roy looked his captain in the eye. "It's about Sam…" Hank raised an eyebrow, waiting patiently for Roy to get it out. "…and me."

"Roy, is this something you want to tell your captain, or your friend?" Hank didn't know just what Roy was about to reveal, but he thought it might be something best kept on a personal level.

"Both." Roy said without hesitation.

"Okay, Pal, what's up?"

"Sam and I… ah, Sam… well, she's my sister."

Hank choked on the sip of coffee he had just taken. After a minute or so of coughing he was finally able to speak.

"Does Chief Engineer Hauts know?" Hank was sure he didn't or Hank would have already known. But he had to ask.

Roy shook his head. "No, I don't think she told anyone coming in. She really didn't want anyone to know. She didn't expect to end up in the same house."

"Roy, why didn't you counsel her? Why did you let her sign up without providing that information?" Hank was curious.

"Cap, I didn't know anything about it until she walked into the station. I hadn't seen her since I joined the service. She had it pretty rough and left home. She's my half sister and she changed her name to her birth mother's when she left. I didn't know that, and I didn't know where she was. I had no idea she was in L.A. or that she was fire fighting."

"No kidding!" Hank was amazed at what Roy was telling him.

"No kidding." Roy answered back.

"Why did you wait to tell me?"

"Honestly? I felt that since she joined the department and withheld the information, it was her place to straighten it out. But as much as I hate to tell you this, Mike found out by accident and I told Johnny. I knew it was a matter of time before it got out and I didn't want it to be through the grape vine, or at the game tonight at Mike's. That's why I decided not to wait for her and I'm telling you now. I'm sorry you didn't know sooner."

"I'm glad you told me. I wish Sam had been forthright. This could get sticky at HQ." Hank said.

"Yeah, I know. What do you think will happen?"

"I really don't know, Roy. I don't suppose that training with you should be a problem. You have Johnny with you. And she isn't going to be assigned to you as a partner; that spot's already been filled. It's my guess that Hauts will probably ask for my input as to how well you two can function as a team around each other. So far I haven't seen any real cause for concern, aside from withholding information. I don't know if he'll do anything, or what it would be. I do think she should come forward as soon as possible. And I mean before her next shift."

"Yeah, I agree. I'll see what I can do."

"Well good luck on that, Pal."

That load finally off of his chest, Roy was able to enjoy the rest of his breakfast. The two firemen kept the rest of the conversation light and when they were through with their breakfast they both headed home to their families.

It was about a quarter to ten in the morning when Hank walked in to his house. Emily greeted him at the door with a big hug and a kiss. "Welcome home, honey. Did you miss us?"

"Of course I did. You're way easier to look at than a bunch of burly firemen!"

Emily chuckled. Then she said, "Before you get ready to relax, Chief Engineer Hauts just called and wanted you to call him back 'at your earliest convenience.'" She said the last part as she made the quote gestures with her fingers. She was aware that the Chief really meant, _yesterday_ if at all possible.

"Swell. Sorry about this, honey. I'll try to keep it short." Hank thought it interesting that Hauts would call him when he was needing to call Hauts himself. Hank walked over to the phone and dialed the number to the L.A. County Fire Department administrative offices.

"Los Angeles County Fire Department, how may I help you?" said a woman's voice on the other end of the line.

"Good morning. This is Captain Hank Stanley, is Chief Engineer Hauts available?"

"One moment Captain. I'll transfer your call."

Chief Engineer Hauts answered after about 15 seconds. "Hank? Thanks for calling me back."

"You're welcome, sir. What can I do for you?" Hank answered.

"Hank, you're never gonna believe this, but I just had a visit from one of your firefighters."

Hank felt his stomach lurch. Surely the news hadn't spread that fast and bypassed him to go straight to Hauts! "Sir?" he questioned. "May I ask who it was that came to visit you?"

"Anderson. And she told me something pretty interesting."

Hank wondered to himself it was what Roy had just revealed or if it had been in regards to the prank that had been played on her at the beginning of the shift. He didn't want to share any unnecessary issues with his boss if he could avoid it so he just said, "Oh?"

"It seems that Ms. Anderson and Roy DeSoto are related. They're brother and sister." The Chief Engineer sounded like the surprise had not yet worn off.

"Uh, yes sir. Yes, I was aware of that." Hank answered. Then he realized how that might have come across as if he had known and withheld the information himself so he quickly added, "DeSoto came forward after the shift ended this morning. I was planning on calling you when I got home today, but you had already called and left a message for me by the time I got home."

"Well, it is to her credit that Anderson came forward before you called me."

"So, how do we handle this, sir?" asked Hank.

"Well Hank, what do _you_ think?" his boss asked him.

_Great. Now I'm on the spot. This is a test. This is only a test. Anything I say can and will be used against me…_" About what exactly, sir?" Hank asked, cautiously.

"What do you think about them working together? How are they doing?" Hauts clarified.

Hank let out a long sigh. Mostly it was to stall for time while he formulated an answer. "Well Chief, they are both very professional. Sam has been working hard and really proved what she is made of this last shift. In fact I am going to be recommending her for a medal of valor. She did a helluva job this shift. As far as interacting with Roy and with the other men, she has been doing very well. There was the expected awkwardness that the situation brings, her being female and all, but they are all working around it fairly well. Roy, well, as usual, he's been patient as a mentor, he's remained professional and he had to make a hard call regarding Sam this shift. She was separated from DeSoto and Gage while searching for a missing child in a burning apartment building when the situation became unsafe enough that our battalion chief gave the all call. I know it was a difficult decision, but Roy obeyed orders and evacuated with out her. It is my opinion that they will be fine working together in the same house."

"Good! I'm glad to hear you say that, because I want to keep her there. I've counseled her regarding the withholding of the information. I understand why she did it. She was concerned that if people knew of the relationship that it would look like preference was given to her as the first woman in the 'club' because she had 'connections'. Of course she would not have received any special consideration, but she say's she was concerned with that appearance. I can't argue the logic there. What was DeSoto's excuse for not coming forward sooner?"

"Well, Chief, he apparently didn't know anything about his sister becoming a firefighter or even being in L.A. He say's he found out when she showed up for roll call. Then he didn't open up because he felt she was the one who had omitted the information and that it would be in her best interest to come forward herself. But then he got worried that the information would get out and he came to me first." Hank carefully omitted the fact that two firemen knew before he or Hauts did.

"Well, you can't argue with that logic either. I think that verbal counseling is about as far as this needs to go. Wouldn't you agree, Hank?" the Chief Engineer asked one of his favorite captains.

"Yes sir, I certainly do. Thank you." Hank was relieved his sr. paramedic and paramedic trainee would not be in trouble. Anybody could make a poor judgment call once in a while, and they certainly hadn't meant any harm by it.

"You're welcome, Hank. Sorry to interrupt your break. I'll let you get back to your family now. Good bye."

"Good bye, Chief," Hank said, before hanging up the phone.

Emily had heard Hank's end of the conversation. She had no idea what the other end had been but the curiosity was nearly killing her based on what she had heard. "What's up, Hank?" she asked.

"You're not going to believe this one," said Hank, and then he proceeded to share his shift with her.

**This chapter was one of those bridges that had to be crossed. **_**Please**_** leave me a little message and let me know what you think or if you see anything I need to fix in the story line so far. I'm trying not to leave any holes. I know many of you are waiting for progress with the two couples I have been working on. I'm working on it, I promise. Thanks for reading. Hotflash**


	16. Chapter 16

Everything Changes

**Chapter 16**

Mike Stoker's face was still flushed with embarrassment when he pulled into the cafe parking lot. He didn't know weather he should be mortified or flattered. He thought he might be both. _Was she putting me on or did she really get a thrill out of that? _Even as he thought it, he felt his ears getting hotter. The redness hadn't gone away yet and it was starting over again. _Great!_ At least no one was there to see it.

After enjoying the morning paper over coffee as he ate the daily special, which consisted of a hamsteak, eggs and hashbrowns, Mike left to run his errands before heading home. Looking down at his gas gage, he noticed it was almost on E. He started looking around for a gas station. He saw one up ahead on the corner and put on his turn signal. Pulling into the station he saw a familiar car parked close to the building. He also saw a woman who's head was nearly under the front of the car and a puddle that was rapidly growing, spilling out from underneath. _Was that…? No. Please no._ Mike pulled in along side of the car. He hopped out of the truck and walked around the front of it to the front of the car, and the back of the woman. _Of all the dumb luck…_

"Sam?" said Mike. Sam tried to straighten up and hit her head on the bumper.

"Ow!" she said, standing up and rubbing the back of her head behind her right ear.

"Sam, are you okay?" asked Mike, watching her bite her lip.

"Mike, what are you doing here?" Her face was as red as Big Red, like Mike's had been a while ago. When she had commented on his butt at the station she figured she had a few days before she would have to face him without the protection of having others around her. It hadn't been two hours yet.

"I uh, needed some fuel and… I saw you… it looked like you were… in trouble." Mike stammered. "Let me look at your head." He said. He made a move toward her and she stepped back and turned away from him.

"I'm fine. It's nothing. Just a little bump." She said it and stopped rubbing her head and put her hand to her side.

"Let me look at it." Insisted Mike. Sam put a hand up to ward him off. "Sam, you're bleeding. Now let me look!" When Sam saw she had blood on her hand she relented and let him examine her. Mike gently spread her strawberry blonde hair away from the injury and looked at it carefully. "Sit tight, well… stand tight. I'm gonna get something to apply pressure with. It isn't bad but you know how head wounds can be." She stood there feeling a little silly while he reached into his truck and under the seat for a first aid kit. He pulled out some gauze pads, opened a large one, folded it and applied it to her head.

"I really feel stupid, now." Said Sam after a minute or two. She was feeling very self-conscious.

"Well, don't. It could happen to anyone." Mike reassured her. He checked on the bleeding. "There, now it's stopped. You probably better have that checked out though." Sam smiled appreciatively at Mike. She didn't say anything.

After a moment of awkward silence Mike looked her in the eye and said, "So… what seems to be the problem with the car?"

"I don't know…I don't speak car." Sam said. "I was driving along and I glanced down at the gages when I was at the red light. I noticed the temperature gage was way up so I pulled in here. I was just getting a look when you pulled in along side of me. Looks like maybe I blew a gasket." She had no idea what she was talking about but it sounded good to her.

"More likely you split a hose," said Mike. "Let me take a look." He opened her door and pulled the tab to release the hood. Then he opened the hood and took a look. Not seeing what he was looking for right away, he reached his hands into the engine compartment and started wiggling things and poking around. "Aha," there's your culprit. Bad hose clamp." He fiddled with it with both hands for a moment then held the now liberated clamp out for her to examine. "They should be able to sell us one in the service station. Wait here and I'll go see about it." He came back a few minutes later with a shiny new hose clamp. He went to his truck and reached behind the seat pulling out a small toolbox. He took out a screwdriver and then went back under the hood of Sam's car fiddling for just a moment or two before he stood up and said, "We'll get some water and coolant in there and she'll be as good as new."

"She wasn't _that_ good _before_ this happened," Sam remarked, sarcastically. Mike smiled as he helped her get fluids back into her car and double-checked the clamp before closing the hood. "All set."

"Thanks, Mike." Sam said it and stood on tiptoe to kiss him on the cheek, much to Mike's surprise. Mike felt his ears get hot again as his face flushed.

"Uh, yeah, sure. Ah… I… gotta gas up."

"Oh, right. That's what you came here for. Um… what do I owe you?" She said.

"Nothing, it just took a minute." Mike said.

"Yeah, well the clamp and the coolant weren't free" she pointed out.

"Don't worry about it." Mike said. He turned to hop back into his truck and pull it up to a pump. Sam couldn't help it. Her eyes gravitated right to his butt. She _liked_ what she saw.

"Nice!" she said.

Mike turned around. "What?"

_Oops! Did I say that out loud? _"Uh, I said thanks, that was nice." She covered it up quickly. He nodded at her and smiled. She got in her car and quickly drove away.

Mike gassed up the truck and was thinking about the rest of his day. He needed to pick up some groceries. After paying for his gas he hopped back into the truck and headed off to the super market.

There were times that Mike realized being a fireman had more advantages than just having a job he loved. For example, he could shop in the morning on a weekday and not have to fight crowds that the late afternoons, evenings and weekends brought. That was a big bonus, especially when it was for a big game. Tonight's game was the Cowboys and the Steelers, two of Mike's favorite teams.

Mike made a mental checklist in his head before he got out of his truck. Buy the groceries, chill the beverages, pick up the house, cook, sleep. That was a lot to get done in eight hours. He decided he better make the grocery store a snappy trip. Zipping through the aisles, he grabbed beer, soda, ice, some fryer chickens, pasta, and all the necessities for making his famous spaghetti sauce. The DeSoto's were planning on bringing dessert, The Stanley's were bringing salad, Marco would bring an assortment of whatever goodies Mama Lopez put together, Chet would bring chips and dip and Johnny would bring a chick and whatever she thought to bring. _I wonder if Sam will come. _Milk! He forgot to get milk. Zipping back through the aisles Mike turned a corner and nearly careened out of control with his cart to avoid running over the woman coming around the corner from the other direction. She also dodged and her cart smacked into an endcap of canned peas spilling cans onto the floor and into her cart. The falling cans landed on her eggs sending bits of egg and shell everywhere.

"Are you okay, Miss?" gasped Mike, looking up to face the woman. When he made eye contact all the color drained out of his face.

"What the… Are you stalking me?" She asked, her voice still raspy.

"No!" Mike answered too quickly. "I mean, it must look that way, but honest, I didn't know you'd be here too. Are you okay?"

"No thanks to you. I can't _believe_ the county lets you _drive_ a fire engine!" Sam croaked.

"Sam, I'm sorry. I was in a hurry and I didn't see you." Mike tried to explain.

"Relax, Mike… I was giving you a hard time… I'm fine." She cleared her throat several times trying to get the words out.

"Geez, Sam. You sound awful. Didn't they give you breathing treatments at the hospital?"

Sam nodded. "Not much help. Maybe you could help me."

"How?"

"Come here," she said, motioning with her finger for him to come closer. He stepped towards her. "Closer," she almost whispered. He stepped even closer to her. It felt awkward being so close to her and he was also considerably taller than she was. The top of her head came to his shoulder.

"What? How can I help?" he asked softly, looking down into her brilliant blue eyes.

Sam reached up and put her arms around his neck, pulling him down to her. "I need another breathing treatment," she said and pressed her lips to his.

Although totally taken by surprise, testosterone and adrenaline took over and Mike responded with a fiery passionate kiss that would melt bricks. He only pulled away when he needed more air than he could take in that way. Suddenly he didn't feel so shy. As he pulled away, Sam actually felt faint and took hold of a shelf for stability. She suddenly felt weak and as though she could not get enough air. Mike saw her tentative look of unsteadiness and put his arms around her, holding her close. He just held her for the next couple of minutes as her breathing gradually slowed and the lightheadedness passed. When she seemed recovered he lifted her chin with his hand and looked her in the eyes.

"Sam, is this really what you want?" he asked.

"Yes." She said. "Since I first saw you lined up for roll call next to your fire engine, I knew it."

"Me too. This could get pretty complicated. Are you sure you want to go there?" Instead of answering, Sam pulled him down for round two.

When they came up for air, a store employee was there, beginning to help clean up the mess made by the cans of peas and the eggs. Mike looked at the boy, barely graduated from high school by the looks of him. The boy looked a little uncomfortable with the passionate display of affection between the two customers, judging by the redness of his face. "Sorry for the mess," Mike offered.

The boy looked up at Mike, then at Sam. He grinned. "No sweat, man. Just, be careful, don't fall getting out of it."

Sam looked at her cart. Smashed eggs, unwanted cans of peas, yogurt covered with smashed eggs, nothing she really wanted. "I think maybe I should start over," she said.

"Good idea," said Mike, taking her by the hand and leading her through the mess to relative safety. "We can use my cart." The two left the kid to do his job and finished Sam's shopping along with Mike's. At the check out stand Mike put Sam's items up first. As she paid for them he put his on the belt.

"So, Sam… Are you coming to the game tonight?" Mike asked.

Sam didn't know the first thing about football. All she knew was that there was this pointy ball that a bunch of men chased each other across a field for and that they tackled each other trying to get possession of it. It sounded pretty boring. But… there would be great food, good company and a chance to bond more with her shift mates, and of course, a chance to be around Mike. "Uh, I don't really get football," she admitted.

"Don't worry about that. Just cheer when the guys cheer and grumble when the guys grumble. They'll never know. Besides, I'm making fried chicken _and_ spaghetti. And Joanne DeSoto will be there. You know her. And you'll like Mrs. Stanley. And Johnny always brings a chick." Mike was trying to think of as many reasons as he could to convince her to come.

"Okay then, but only if you go with me somewhere." Sam gave in.

"Where?" Mike asked, eager to oblige.

"I really do need another breathing treatment. And my head is throbbing where I bumped it."

"Tell you what, follow me to my place so I can put the food away then I'll take you to Rampart myself. I live close to the hospital anyway, relatively. Are you okay to drive?" Sam nodded affirmatively.

When the groceries were paid for, they walked out and Mike loaded them into his truck. "Follow me."

"I'm not too familiar with this area, Mike. I haven't lived in California for a long time."

"I'll be careful not to lose you. If we get separated, just pull over. I'll come back for you," he reassured.

An hour later, Sam was in treatment room three. Doctor Brackett had just ordered another breathing treatment for her and while the nurse started to set it all up, he took a look at the bump and cut on Sam's head.

"Did this happen in the fire?" he asked.

"No, it was after I left. I hit my head on the bumper of my car."

"How did _that_ happen?" he asked.

"One of my hose clamps went bad. I was looking under my car when someone startled me. I stood up too quickly and forgot to move my head clear of the bumper."

"So I see. Did it bleed much?"

"A bit. We had to apply pressure to stop it. It wasn't major though," answered Sam

"I don't like how swollen it is."

"Well, I haven't had the chance to ice it yet. As you can see, I haven't even gotten a chance to shower and change since this morning's fire, either."

"Well, you're going to have plenty of time now. I want you to take that breathing treatment and then I'll check on you. If you sound better, I'll send you home, under the condition that you go to bed. No more running around. Of course, you can get cleaned up first, but I mean it. Your body needs to rest. When's your next shift?"

"Wednesday."

"Then I want you in here Tuesday afternoon so I can listen to your lungs."

"Yes, Doctor."

Nurse Walter set up the breathing machine and got Sam all situated. She made sure she was comfortable then stepped out to let the machine do its work.

Sam stepped out into the waiting room a while later looking and sounding much better, though she still sounded more like a frog than a woman. Mike stood up as soon as he saw her.

"You're chariot awaits, M'Lady."

"Ah, I've seen the way you drive. I think I'll call a cab," Sam joked.

Mike grinned and put his arm around her. "Come on," he chuckled. "You can rest at my place."

***Okay, I hope that you liked that chapter. For all you Johnny fans -he and Sharon are next, don't worry. Please leave me a review and let me know you're there. It really makes writing more fun. And sometimes your comments give ideas that fend off writer's block too, so reviews are very important. Thanks for reading! -Hotflash**

6


	17. Chapter 17

***Kathey'sSis discovered a large boo boo in the previous two chapters and was kind enough to point it out. The paramedics were called out and treatment orders given. The patient is on the road to recovery! (seriously, the mistake was big but the fix was small. It does not affect the basic storyline so there is no need to go back and read those chapters over.) I only mention it to give Kathey'sSis credit! Credit also goes to my son who brainstormed the "treatment orders!" Thank you SO much. -Hotflash**

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 17**

At exactly 1:40 in the afternoon Johnny stood at the base station at Rampart Emergency joking with Dixie as he waited for his girlfriend. Her shift was over at 2:00 and the rest of her day had been promised to him. After reducing the head nurse to a fit of giggles, Johnny became quiet. Dixie noticed her friend's change in expression immediately.

"Johnny?" she inquired. "Is something wrong?"

At first Johnny didn't answer her, but then he became aware of the long pause between them. "Huh? Did you say something, Dix?"

"Johnny, are you okay?" She asked her friend, concern evident in her voice.

"Me? Yeah! Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well, it's just that one minute you're telling me corny jokes and in the next instant you get all quiet and introspective on me. What's up?"

"Oh, it's nothing, Dix… It's just… well… Oh, who am I kidding? You wouldn't understand."

Dixie loved a good challenge. "Oh yeah? Try me!"

"You wouldn't understand!" insisted Johnny.

"Well, why do you say that?" demanded the increasingly frustrated nurse.

Johnny answered matter-of-factly. "Because. You're not married!" The tone in Johnny's voice indicated that he was sure this fact proved his point.

"Well what's _that_ got to do with anything?" .

Before Johnny could answer, Nurse Walter rounded the corner to the hall and spotted her boyfriend talking with her supervisor. "Johnny!" she exclaimed from partly down the hall.

Johnny's crooked grin took over his face as he turned to greet the pretty redhead. "Sharon, how's it goin?"

"Great Johnny. And it'll be going even better in 20 minutes. I'll see you soon."

"Awright! I'll uh, be in the lounge having coffee and waiting for you," he called after her as she headed off to finish her shift. Turning to Dixie again he said, "Buy you a cup of coffee?"

"Only if we get to finish that little conversation we just started." Dixie looked him in the eye with a determined look on her own face as she came around the counter. The two of them headed down the hallway to the lounge.

When they got there, Johnny poured them each a cup of liquid energy and the two sat at a table to drink it and talk. "So, John Gage, what is on your mind this morning?" asked Dixie, directly.

Johnny's eyes twinkled as his grin reappeared. "Well, Dix… I was wondering… If uh, if the right guy was to propose to you… well, how would you want him to do it?"

Dixie smiled brightly. "Does this have anything to do with a certain nurse we both know who just happens to be off shift in about 15 minutes?" she asked.

"Don't rush me!" Johnny quickly insisted. "This is strictly theoretical. Just out of pure… curiosity."

"Of course." Said Dixie. "Well, you know, every woman is different. They all have their own… fantasies if you will, about how it might happen some day. But I think, it would depend on the man that was asking as to how I personally would like it to happen."

"What do you mean?" Johnny asked, one eyebrow raised in curiosity.

"Well, if I was being proposed to by a chef, I might think a very expensive, very private and romantic dinner might be the setting and the ring might be presented oh… I don't know… in an oyster shell on a plate of seafood. You know, like a pearl."

Johnny just looked at her and didn't say anything.

"Or a police officer might propose by having me "taken in for questioning" for something made up and then the questioning would be the actual proposal."

"Huh…" said Johnny, unsure of what else to say.

"I guess the point I am making is that it should be something uniquely related to the one doing the asking or the one being asked… or both. At least, that's my opinion. Does that help you any?"

Johnny thought about it a moment. "Yeee-aaah, yeah, I think maybe it does." He sounded more sure of himself by the end of his sentence than he did at the beginning of it.

"Good! Now that wasn't such a bad answer then… for a bachelor-lady… now was it?

Johnny chuckled. "Ya know Dix? You're all right!"

"You're not so bad yourself, Hot Stuff. Now, I'd better get back to work, and Sharon should be ready any minute. I'll see you later… And good luck!" Dixie encouraged.

"Hey, I said it was just a theoretical question. Just curiosity." Johnny protested.

"Right." Said Dixie as she walked out of the lounge and headed back down the hall.

A short while later, Johnny was walking Sharon out to his Rover. "How was your shift?" He asked her.

"Busy, as usual. I met your paramedic trainee today." She said.

"Sam? Really? I never saw you when we were in this morning."

"That's because I was tied up with a teenage mother to be in labor. But I had heard that you both had been in after your fire this morning."

"So when did you meet her?" Johnny was curious.

"Later this morning. She had to come back. She had inhaled a lot of smoke at that fire and she was still suffering the effects. And she hit her head on something too."

"She's doing all right now isn't she?" Johnny asked, concerned.

"Well she was when she left here." Answered Sharon. They had just reached the Rover and Johnny unlocked the door and opened it for her. Before she could start to get in he put his arms around her and looked down into her vibrant green eyes. She gazed back into his warm brown eyes and smiled. She started feeling warm all over and her heart began to race a little in anticipation.

Johnny let the gaze between them linger a moment and then bent in to kiss her, gently. Sharon returned the kiss and her excitement got away from her. She kissed back with more enthusiasm than she had intended. Of course, Johnny responded equally back. He was more than happy to follow her lead. Sharon lost herself in the moment, drinking in the warm earthy scent that was Johnny's own body chemistry combined with whatever aftershave he used. She found it irresistibly intoxicating. She let out a soft sigh of pleasure without realizing it.

Johnny felt his own excitement increasing and realized that it was going to be up to him to keep things calmed down until she was absolutely ready for him. He started to back off when she let out the sigh and it took everything in him to end the kiss. Involuntarily he let out a quiet groan of frustration as he did so. It didn't appear that Sharon had noticed. He pulled away from her and helped her into the seat, closing the door gently when she was situated. _Man oh man! _

Johnny got into the driver's seat and closed the door. Neither of them spoke as he started the engine and put it into gear. Surprisingly, the silence between them did not feel awkward, but rather was comforting. Johnny drove to Sharon's apartment while wondering about what Sharon might want for herself as a wife. Would she be able to handle being a fireman's wife? He knew that was a lot to ask of any woman. Would she want children? Would she want to live in a rural or urban area? He knew she liked horses so he figured his home would be acceptable to her, but he didn't want to assume anything. He loved her and he wanted her to be happy. That was the most important thing. _God, I'm really thinking about doing this! _Johnny thought to himself. _Me._ He was both excited and scared at the same time. _Slow down, Gage. No need to rush. _

The silence between them afforded Sharon her own thoughts as well. _Oh no, I'm doing it again! It feels so good to be with him, but I'm not being fair! _She was confused and scared and hopelessly in love. She realized that every moment she wasn't with him, he occupied all of her free thoughts. In his arms she felt so confident and alive. She was finding it almost impossible to hold back now. Her shyness, with him at least, was rapidly going away. Passion was taking over and it was harder and harder to fight it.

After a while, Johnny pulled into the parking lot to Sharon's apartment complex. Sharon was thinking so hard about their relationship that she didn't notice. He reached over and put his hand on hers. "Well, here we are. I told Stoker we'd show up around 5 or so." His voice brought her back to awareness.

"Oh, good. That will give me time to make the snacks. I thought I'd bring a giant batch of "Chex party mix. I already have all the ingredients." She explained. "It seems appropriate for a football game."

The couple walked up to Sharon's apartment hand in hand. Sharon handed over the keys when Johnny held out his free hand and he used them to open the door. He gestured Sharon in first then followed, closing the door behind them.

"Johnny, make yourself at home. I'm going to take a shower and change. There's coffee if in the cupboard if you want to make some. The newspaper is on the counter."

"Don't worry about me, I can take care of myself. You just go do your thing." Johnny hated to be fussed over.

Sharon hugged him before heading off to her shower. Johnny started the coffee then sat down and leaned back on the couch and rested his eyes while he waited. _I wonder how Roy proposed to Joanne._

It was almost 45 minutes before Sharon emerged from her shower, now dressed in blue jeans and a soft green t-shirt. Her soft honeysuckle and jasmine perfume was a pleasant scent that Johnny enjoyed as he embraced her. They kissed tenderly and then Sharon began the task of preparing the snacks for the game. Later they cuddled on the couch and in the comfort of Johnny's arms, Sharon fell asleep listening to his heartbeat. When Johnny realized she was asleep, he smiled and let her sleep as he held her and stroked her soft hair. He felt satisfied and complete with her in his arms. He knew for certain that she was "the one" and the thought of settling down no longer made him nervous. Just as soon as Johnny could figure out just how he ought to do it, Johnny intended to ask her to marry him.

***Sorry this chapter took me so long to get out. I just joined the 21****st**** century and got high speed internet. I got a little distracted by all the things I can do now that I couldn't before and I wasted a lot of time doing them!! LOL Please take a couple of minutes and leave me a review. Let me know what you like, or don't like. And if you find a flaw in the story, please tell me that too!! Thanks! -Hotflash**


	18. Chapter 18

**Everything Changes**

Chapter 18

"So Sam," Mike asked as they drove home from the grocery store. "Where exactly do you live?"

Sam turned a little red before answering Mike's question. "Um… well, actually I live pretty close to _you_."

"You do? Where at?"

"Right there!" Sam said, pointing out the window as they drove past.

"The motel?" asked Mike, hoping she was kidding.

"Close, but no. Did you notice that small two story house next door on the south side?"

"No, not really." Mike admitted. "But it wasn't like I had much time to look!"

"I know. Sorry. But there is a small yellow house on the south side. There is a nice old lady who lives there and I rent her upstairs. It isn't much, but it's a roof over my head and, by helping her out with her housework and errands, she made the rent affordable, even for a boot." Sam explained.

"Oh, she has an upper apartment then." Mike clarified.

"Not exactly. The upstairs has a bedroom, another small room with no window that appears to be a converted walk in closet, a bathroom and at the landing at the top of the stairs is sort of a large open area. I use it for my living room."

"What about the kitchen?" asked Mike.

"I don't have a kitchen."

"Well how do you cook?" Mike was puzzled.

"I don't often, Ms. Millie is a great cook. I have kitchen privileges when I want to cook but most of the time she takes care of me. I think it's a pretty great arrangement."

"How long have you lived there?"

"Since I came back to the Los Angeles area; not quite four months now." She answered as Mike pulled into his driveway.

"How is it that you live this close and you told me you don't know the area much?" Mike was curious now.

"Because I just moved here, then I got right in to paramedic training. I didn't have time to explore. I just looked in the newspaper for places I could afford and lucked onto this one. I wanted one near Harbor General but I couldn't find anything. Luckily, this was close to the freeway so it all worked out."

Mike unlocked the door for Sam and escorted her inside. "I'm glad it did." He said. "I'll be right back. I'll go get the groceries." He headed out only to find Sam right behind him. He gave her a questioning look.

"I have to get my bag out of my car. If I am going to spend the day here, I still need to shower."

"Why? You look great!" Mike teased her as he wiped some soot off of her forehead.

"Thanks a lot." With that, Sam went to her car to retrieve her duffel and Mike started bringing in groceries. Once both were inside the house Mike took some towels out of his linen closet and directed her to the shower. Sam thanked him and disappeared.

When Sam emerged a while later, Mike was busily frying chicken. It smelled very good and Sam's mouth began to water a bit. "Mmmmmm" she said, following some loud deep sniffs. "That smells so wonderful. I've heard the guys rave about your chicken… And your spaghetti."

Mike blushed a little. "It's not bad." He said modestly. "Are you hungry at all?"

"I could eat a little something."

"How 'bout a sandwich?"

"That sounds good."

"Sit down and I'll fix you one. BLT or ham and cheese?" Mike offered.

"Mmmm! BLT, please. Can I help?"

"No need. I've got it covered. How is your head feeling?"

"Oh, Mike, it's not so bad. I have a little bit of a headache but I'll live." She said.

"You want some aspirin?"

"No. I'm fine. Thanks." She got back up from the table as she said it. She walked to the stove where a batch of chicken was frying. "Okay if I turn this for you?"

"It can wait a minute or two longer. I want it nice and golden."

Sam shrugged then approached the chef who was busily slicing tomatoes. She stood very close to him, watching him work. Mike began to feel self conscious and he stopped slicing and looked her in the eye.

"Did you need something?"

She grinned. "I thought you'd never ask. She took the knife out of his hand and set it on the counter. "Mike, kiss me again."

The usually reserved engineer blushed a little but obliged her, willingly. He couldn't believe she was actively pursuing him. He'd been around girls who practically threw themselves at him before. It kind of came with the territory. Women expected firemen to be aggressive lovers and there were plenty of women out there that were after just that. Sam was different though. While she was being aggressive, there was a softness to her as well. He couldn't explain it, but it just felt different. And this time he was more than physically attracted too.

"Sam, wait." Mike stopped kissing her. "You need to eat and get some rest and I have a whole lot of cooking to do. There's no hurry for us." He stepped slightly away from her. He turned to the chicken that was frying and decided it was ready to turn so he took care of that. Then he picked up the knife he had been using and resumed making her lunch.

"Are you having second thoughts?" asked Sam.

He looked her in the eye momentarily before he answered carefully.

"Sam, we barely know each other. I'm enjoying being with you, but there are a lot of things to consider here. We've just met, we work together, your brother is one of my best friends…"

"Whoa! Wait a minute. Roy is my brother but he is not my keeper! He has nothing to do with my relationships. I don't need his approval to become involved with someone." Sam got defensive in a hurry.

Mike put the knife back down. He took the chicken off the burner and turned it off. He could finish it later and he didn't need a grease fire while he was distracted. He touched Sam on the shoulder and said, "Sam, wait…"

Sam pulled back away from his touch and continued her rant. "I am a grown woman and I can date whomever I please. I don't need anyone's permission…"

"Sam!" Mike said it loudly to be heard over the top of her. His sharpness caught her off guard and she quieted. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell, but I need you to listen for a minute, please." He reached out to take her hand and waited for her to offer it willingly. Tentatively she did and he held it in both of his hands. "Sam," he said softly. "I know you are a grown woman, I can _see_ that, and you certainly can take care of yourself or you wouldn't be where you are today. Of course you don't _need_ Roy's permission _or _his approval. I won't lie, Sam. I am _very_ attracted to you and even I don't know what about you draws me to you so strongly, but I do know I don't want to be in such a hurry. I think you are terrific. Let's just take our time and let things develop."

"But Mike, I know what I want. I am not going to go all nuts and freak out on you. If two people are attracted to each other, why should anything else matter, assuming they are both available?"

"Because, Sam. It matters to me. See, I'm kind of an old fashioned guy. I kind of like the chase. Don't get me wrong; I love your boldness. But I guess I'm a romantic at heart. And that means that I want to take things a little slower. I want to get to know you in here." He tapped a finger on her forehead. "And here," he said as he placed his hand over her heart. "Because I care about you and I respect you." He squeezed her hand, reassuringly as he finished speaking. "Does that make sense to you?"

"I guess, kind of." Sam answered. "You're saying you are attracted but you don't want me physically, I'm too pushy and you realize I don't need Roy's approval, but you'd like to have it anyway."

"Sam, that's not exactly what I said or meant. I never said you were too pushy. I said you were bold, and that I _like_ your boldness. You know what you want and you are not afraid to go after that. That is a great trait. It's sexy and exciting. I am very attracted to you and yes I _do_ want you physically. What man wouldn't? But I want to wait until we know each other better before we go somewhere we cannot return from. What if we find that we're not compatible in a few weeks? Do you know how awkward that would make life for us at work? And yes, if I'm being honest, I _do_ want Roy's approval, or at least his blessing before I get too serious with his sister. It's just a kind of a code amongst guys. It's the respectful thing to do. It's what I would expect of him if the situation was reversed."

Sam looked down at the floor. She felt a little embarrassed that she had come on so strongly to Mike. She was sure she knew what she wanted, but she didn't think about how he might feel and now she was ashamed at being selfish. "I'm sorry. It wasn't fair of me to assume how you might feel. I'm kind of embarrassed. And I still want more than what you are willing to offer right now. I hope that doesn't make you think badly of me."

Mike lifted her chin to look her in the eyes. "No way, Sam. I don't think badly of you at all. I think you're great. I could take you, right here, right now. But if I did I think we'd both regret it later. I'm glad you feel the way you do. I love that you feel that way. Please, just trust me." Mikes expression changed from serious to a playful smile. "We can still make out. We just have to set boundaries."

"Okay Mike." Sam sighed. "I'll let you lead a while."

Mike pulled her into his arms and held her tightly. "I'm glad you said that. I promise, I'll make it worth it." Sam squeezed him back and they shared a long hug. After a moment, Mike pulled away from the hug and looked into her face again. "Now, let's see about your lunch and get you a nap. You need the rest to get well. You don't want everyone to think you're really just a frog in disguise do you?"

"Ribbet!" Sam croaked, then laughed.

Mike put the chicken back on to cook and then finished making Sam's sandwich. He put it on a plate and set it on the table. He took a granny smith apple out of the refrigerator, washed it and cut it into wedges then added it to her plate. Then he got a glass out of the cupboard and poured her a glass of milk. Setting it down in front of her he looked at her and said, "Will that be all ma'am?"

"Aren't you eating?" she asked.

"No, thank you. I went to breakfast after I left the station and I am not hungry. I'll keep you company while you eat though, as long as you don't mind me cooking at the same time."

Sam agreed and started enjoying the lunch Mike had made for her. The two enjoyed good conversation about the kinds of things they liked to do, places they had been and places they would like to go someday. When Sam finished her lunch, Mike walked her to his guest room and encouraged her to nap. "I'll be here when you get up." He said. "I'm not going anywhere."

"Thanks Mike. G'night." She said. She was very tired and the nap actually sounded very good to her right now.

"Sleep tight." Mike said and kissed her on the forehead before turning to leave. He shut the door behind him and went back to finish his cooking. With any luck, he would be able to complete the tasks he needed to fulfill and still get a nap himself.


	19. Chapter 19

Everything Changes

Chapter 19

*Unfortunately, I typed some notes to myself at the end of the last chapter and forgot to delete them before posting!  Only one of you mentioned it, THANKS Black_Angel_001! So hopefully nobody else noticed? I can always hope! Either way, after debating long and hard about it, I am not going to scrub my idea. So if you know what I am talking about, sorry for the goof. If not, please disregard the whole spiel. Thanks! 

*Just a special thanks to Black_Angel_001 who wrote all of the football plays because I still don't get why grown men would chase each other around a field and tackle each other over a pointed ball. But I think it's cool if the rest of y'all like it! ;) Thanks a lot for reading.

It was a quarter after four when Mike finished cooking and cleaning. He finally felt ready to receive company. _So much for a nap, _he thought. Sam had been sleeping peacefully, as far as he could tell. It was time to wake her so she'd be ready when the guests arrived. He knocked softly on the door to the guest room. After waiting for an answer and hearing none, Mike knocked again a little louder and cracked the door open. He could hear her snoring softly so he pushed the door all the way open and walked over to her. Sitting on the bed, Mike reached over and swept the hair out of Sam's face. She stirred slightly at his touch.

"Hey Beautiful, it's about time to wake up," he said.

Sam tried to speak but couldn't so she cleared her throat and opened her eyes. Looking up she saw Mike smiling down at her. "Hey," she said still somewhat raspy.

"Hey yourself. How are you feeling?" Mike asked Sam.

"Okay, but for this croak that won't go away," she answered with a smile. "What time is it?"

"It's a little after four. The guys are supposed to be here around five. Why don't you freshen up and I'll go fix you something to help with that croak."

"That sounds good." She said.

"You know where everything is. I'll see you when you come out." Mike said. He gave Sam's hand a little affectionate squeeze then he got up and headed to the kitchen.

Mike had a steaming cup of coffee in front of him when Sam entered the kitchen. He got up and prepared a hot drink for her and set it in front of her at the table. "My mom used to give me tea and honey when I ate too much smoke as a boot. It does wonders for the throat."

"Thanks," she said. "Your cooking smells great. I can't wait to try Stoker's famous chicken and spaghetti."

"You won't have to wait long, the guys will be here soon. Your brother's family will probably be here first. Jo always helps me out when I host."

"Oh, good. I need to talk to Roy before Cap arrives. I told Chief Engineer Hauts everything this morning. I want Cap to know from me before Hauts tells him. I tried to tell him this morning, but something came up."

"You went straight to Chief Hauts before you went to Cap? " Mike was very surprised.

"Mike, I realized that my omission could get Roy in trouble too. That's the last thing I want. I had to set things straight and Cap wasn't available. Besides, it was the Chief I omitted the information to in the first place."

"I guess that makes sense, but I don't think Cap is going to like it." Mike said. "How did it go with Hauts?"

"Surprisingly well. He was relatively understanding and he lectured me a little, but I don't think there will be any major repercussions, thankfully," Sam shared.

"Let's just hope that Cap takes it so well."

Sam was biting her lip in true DeSoto fashion. "I hope so."

Mike watched her, thoughtfully. Suddenly she jumped up. "Where's your phone?" she asked.

Again, Mike was confused. "There's one mounted on the wall by the doorway. What's the matter?"

"I never called Ms. Millie. She didn't know I wasn't coming home after work. She's probably worried to death!" Sam was dialing the phone before she finished speaking.

Mike shook his head. Sam sure seemed to find trouble wherever she went. _What am I getting myself into? _Mike got up and walked into the living room and gave it a final once-over. Everything was ready for his friends.

Roy and Joanne and the kids were the first to arrive at Mike's home that evening. The kids were excited to see Uncle Mike. Katie ran ahead and Chris hobbled quickly with one crutch to the door, ahead of their parents. Mike heard their laughter and Katie's running feet and he had the door opened before they could knock. Katie's little hand was up in the air all ready when he opened it. She gave out a little squeal of surprise and then laughed.

"Uncle Mike how did you know we were here?" she asked through her giggles.

"That's privileged information, young lady." Said Mike. He tousled her hair then reached out and shook Chris's hand. "Chris, my man. How are you?"

"Hi, Uncle Mike. I'm fine, thank you."

"Well, come in, come in. Let your parents through the door. You remember where the games are, right?" Chris nodded as he hobbled out of the way to let his mom and dad in. "Good. You two go play."

As the kids headed off to play, Joanne stepped up to the door looking far more casual than usual. She was wearing jeans and a plain yellow dress shirt of Roy's with the sleeves rolled up. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail. Before stepping inside, she kicked off a pair of navy canvas tennis shoes and left them out on the porch, along side the door. She stepped inside and hugged Mike. "How are you Mike? It's good to see you again."

"Great, Jo. Glad you guys could make it," he said hugging her back.

Roy came in right behind her carrying a cardboard box. "Joanne made a couple of desserts and some snacks," he said, nodding towards the box in his hands. Mike reached for the box and took it to the kitchen. Roy and Joanne followed him. Sam was just hanging up the phone when they walked in. She and Roy made eye contact and then both began to speak.

"Roy…"

"Sam…"

They both stopped short to let the other one speak, but then neither of them did. After an awkward moment they both tried again with the same results. Roy put his hand on Sam's shoulder. "You go first."

Sam smiled at him. "Thanks. Some things never change, huh?" Roy nodded in agreement and then Sam spoke again. "Can we uh… take a little walk?" She asked him.

"Yeah, sure." Roy agreed. Turning to his wife he said, "Honey, we'll be back in a few minutes." Joanne nodded an acknowledgement. The two siblings walked outside and shared a brief conversation. When they returned, both looked more relaxed than they had looked when they went out.

"Roy, what was that about?" asked Joanne. She wasn't trying to be nosey, she was just curious. And she noticed Roy was more relaxed.

"Well, you know how I was worried about Sam and how she'd take it that I talked to Cap?" Roy started to explain. Joanne nodded. "Well, it seems that she went to the Chief Engineer this morning and told him everything. And she wasn't mad at me for going to Cap."

"That's great! So everything is in the open and on the up and up?" Joanne was clarifying.

"Yeah, I guess so. Except that Marco and Chet don't know anything about it. I guess they will soon enough." Roy smiled just as the doorbell rang.

Mike opened the door to find his captain and Emily Stanley smiling at him. Cap was carrying two large serving dishes. Mike immediately took one of them from him then Emily and Hank stepped in through the door and went to the kitchen.

"Michael, hello." Said Emily. She was particularly fond of Hank's quiet engineer. "I brought a fruit tray along with the salad." She sniffed the air and smiled. "Your spaghetti smells wonderful!"

Mike blushed a little. Emily always had a compliment for him. And he always felt a little self-conscious when she shared them, especially in the company of others.

"Emily!" Joanne greeted her friend, excitedly. "It's so nice to see you." The two ladies shared a hug and then Emily shooed all of the men out of the kitchen so that she and Joanne could organize the layout for the food. It wasn't long before Chet and Marco came in together along with their offerings for the evening. They quickly set them down and escaped the kitchen to the living room where the men were talking football already.

Sam was hanging out in the living room trying to listen carefully to what was being said about football. She didn't want to look stupid in front of the guys, but she really didn't know the first thing about the game. She finally decided nobody would notice and slipped out of the living room into the kitchen.

"Hi Jo," she said. Then looking at Emily she reached out a hand and said, "Hi, I'm Sam."

"Sam, it's so nice to meet you!" Emily smiled and ignored Sam's hand. She gave her a big hug instead. "When you're with 51's, you're family. Handshakes are for strangers." Sam smiled and thanked her.

"Can I help with anything?" Sam asked.

"Sure, you can set these out," said Jo, getting into Mike's pantry where he kept paper plates and disposable utensils. Sam took the unopened packages and started opening them. As she did so she noticed how tired Joanne looked.

"Jo, are you feeling okay? You look kind of tired." Sam said to her.

"I'm okay. I haven't been sleeping that well and I _am_ kind of tired. But don't worry… I'm fine. Nothing I can't handle. Roy will be home again tomorrow and I'll get a chance to sleep in."

Sam finished setting out the plates and utensils. Eying a bag on the counter she said, "What's in here?"

"Oh, Marco brought that," said Emily. "Mama Lopez loves to cook! It's bound to be a real treat."

Sam looked inside. She saw two large bundles of food wrapped in foil. Pulling them out she looked to see what they were. "Tamales! Mmmmm. These smell so good." She announced.

"What's in the other one?" Asked Emily.

Sam opened it. "Empanadas."

"I told you it would be a treat." Emily said with a smile. Sam made space for the items on the stovetop. The warmth coming from the oven below would help keep things warm just a little longer until they were ready to eat.

Soon the ladies had all the food lined out and everything was ready. They were just waiting on Johnny and his "chick."

The ladies stepped out of the kitchen and joined the men who were all standing around telling stories to each other. Mike was passing out cold beers to his friends. When the ladies walked into the living room he offered them some as well. Emily and Sam both accepted the ice cold offering. Joanne declined.

"No thanks, Mike. I'm already tired. I'm afraid if I drink that I'll fall asleep and miss the game!"

"Maybe coffee would be more agreeable?" Mike suggested. "There's a fresh pot in the kitchen."

Before Joanne could respond the doorbell rang again. Roy opened the door and Johnny and Sharon came in. Johnny was all smiles and Sharon also looked happy, though Roy thought she looked a little uncomfortable.

"Sharon, glad you could make it. Too bad he tagged along with you!" Teased Roy.

"Oh, Roy, be nice!" she said, smacking him on the arm. Roy's teasing had the desired effect. Sharon relaxed a little and looked a bit less uncomfortable.

"Hey, John. Glad you could join us." Cap couldn't help but give his junior paramedic a hard time. He showed up typically last. Holding his hand out to Sharon he said, "I'm Hank Stanley."

"Sorry Cap," said John. "This is Sharon Walter. She's a nurse at Rampart."

"Of course." Hank wasn't surprised.

"Technically, I'm a student nurse." Sharon corrected.

"Sharon, this is Mike, he drives the engine. This is Chet and Marco. They're linemen. Guys, this is Sharon. Oh, and this is Roy's wife, Joanne; Cap's wife, Emily; and this is Sam, our new paramedic trainee."

"We've met," Sam said. "This morning."

"You are sounding a little better, how do you feel?" asked Sharon.

"I'll live. I'm breathing much better, thanks." Sam answered.

"Good. I'm glad." Sharon said, smiling.

Now that everyone was finally there, Joanne announced that the food was ready and the group converged on the kitchen, dishing up generous platefuls of all sorts of wonderful offerings. They spread out throughout the living room in front of the television to watch the pre-game show and commentary. Soon enough the game was underway and all were watching and cheering from time to time. Other times they were grumbling. Sam went along with the crowd. She was quite bored with the game, but the company was good. She could live with that for now.

_*Steelers running back going to the 45...35...he made it all the way to the 24 yard line before getting tackled by the cowboy defense!_

The room filled with jeers at the announcer's narration. "Oh man, that had to hurt!" said Chet.

The running back was on the ground not getting up right away. Roy and Johnny had their eyes riveted to the screen. Even off duty, they still couldn't turn off their training. Both were assessing the situation based on what they could see. One of the referees and a coach started jogging toward the downed player to check him out but before they reached him he rolled over and slowly stood up. The referee and coach spoke to him a minute and then the coach smacked him on the backside and the running back jogged back over to his team. Apparently he'd just had the wind knocked out of him.

Both paramedics visibly relaxed a little when the game resumed. When Sharon saw Johnny relax she snuggled in a little closer on the couch. Johnny's eyes never left the screen, but he tightened his arm around her a little and his smile was a little bigger. Chet noticed and couldn't help but feel a little tinge of jealousy. He wondered silently to himself why Gage always got the chicks.

Sam looked around the room. Everyone including the kids were entranced by the game. She on the other hand, was not. She was bored. She looked over at Sharon and Johnny cuddling and then at Roy and Joanne. Roy had his arm around his wife and she had her head tucked in against his shoulder. She looked tired but content. Hank was seated in the recliner chair and Emily was across his lap with her arm around his neck. She wished she were snuggled up next to Mike. At least then she'd be getting something out of watching the game.

After a while, Sam was so bored she couldn't sit still. When a commercial break started she stood up and started gathering plates that were empty except for napkins and chicken bones to take to the garbage. She walked around the room asking each person if they were through before taking the plates. She was getting quite a stack and Mike noticed she was having a hard time getting them to stack together and not fall.

Mike stood up. "Here, let me help with that," he said. The two of them took all of the trash into the kitchen and threw it away. While they were alone in the kitchen Mike said to her, "You're bored to death aren't you?"

"It's okay. At least the company is good." Sam croaked out trying to say it brightly.

He took her by the arm and pulled her into a hug. "I'm glad you stayed."

"Thanks. You almost just made it worth it." She said, smiling. "It sounds like the game's back on. Go on. I'm gonna start wrapping food up for the refrigerator."

"You want some help?" Mike offered.

"No, go on. Go enjoy your game." Sam declined.

Mike smiled at her and walked back to the game.

_*Flag down, probably for Steelers. They've been getting a lot of them since their 26 point lead. Called on 39, holding, and the Steelers loose 4 yards._

"That's just not right!" Complained Marco. The others groaned in agreement.

At half time, Sam noticed Katie looking bored and tired. She went over to the little girl.

"Hey Sweetie, you're looking a little tired." She said.

"I am not… " Katie tried to stifle a yawn. "…Tired. I just don't feel like watching football any more." She said.

"Well, what do you want to do?" asked Sam.

"I want to play a game."

"Okay, what game would you like to play?" Sam asked.

"I want to play goldfish." Katie answered, mispronouncing the name of the game like most kids her age.

"Okay, go ask your Uncle Mike where some cards are and I'll play with you in the kitchen."

"I know where they are. He already showed us before." Said Katie.

"Then go get 'em. I'll meet you in the kitchen."

After a few rounds of "goldfish," Sam suggested the two of them bring some desserts out to the rest of the gang. "You carry the plates and napkins." Sam handed them to the little girl. Sam picked up a tray that she had carefully arranged with the dessert offerings and some of the fruit from the fruit tray and carried it into the living room with Katie in tow.

_*45, Mark Johnson, with the ball, running for the endzone from the 27 line. He's going all the way! Touchdown Cowboys!_

Katie proudly gave each person a plate while Sam held out the tray for each to choose from.

"You're quite the helper. Your mom and dad are lucky to have you around," complimented Mike. Katie beamed with the compliment.

"Aunt Sammy and I played goldfish and I winned two times." Announced the little girl.

"Won." Corrected Roy.

"No, two!" insisted Katie.

That brought a round of chuckles. "You _won_ two times," said Roy.

"That's what I said!" Said Katie. Her dad was sure silly sometimes. Of course more chuckles ensued and Roy put his hands up in the air and shrugged.

"You shouldn't argue with your daughter. You'll never win." Said Joanne. She got up to use the restroom. "Does anybody want anything else while I'm up?" she asked. Nobody seemed to so she left the room. She came back looking not herself and sat back down next to her husband. He looked at her and noticed she looked uncomfortable.

"Honey, are you okay?" he asked with concern.

"Just a little heartburn," she said. "It will pass. I just took some TUMS."

"You've been complaining of that often lately. Maybe you should see the doctor."

"Roy, it's just a little heartburn. I'm fine." She hated when he fussed over her like that. Every time she had the slightest complaint he paramedic-ed her. "Watch the game." He gave her a squeeze then did as she directed.

It was the final quarter and time was almost out. Joanne was glad. She was ready to go home and hit the hay. Katie had climbed up into her lap and had already fallen asleep and Joanne couldn't help but feel a little envious of Katie's ability to do so anywhere.

_*Fourth quarter, 2 and 10, 1 minute left on the clock. Cowboys are 16 yards from the endzone, and if they make this and the field goal, they win the game. The hike, the pass, a fake pass off! 45 has the ball and is running...but he's hit hard from the side by Steeler defensive lineman 6! He's down and there's the timer! Steelers win the game, 46 to 43!_

The room erupted into loudly cheering firemen and families. The favorite team had won! After a few minutes of joyous celebration that had wakened Katie, she announced to her parents that she wanted to go home now.

Before long, Mike had his house back to himself. Thanks to the women from the 51's family, there wasn't much mess to clean up either. It had been a good day. With a long satisfied sigh, Mike headed for his bedroom and a good night's sleep.

*I'm finding less time to write so the chapters are coming a bit slower. Thanks for bearing with me on that. Please leave me a review! Thanks! -Hotflash


	20. Chapter 20

Everything Changes

Chapter 20

Having been cleared Tuesday afternoon by Dr. Brackett, Sam found herself sitting at the table in the dayroom drinking coffee with the C-shift. She had come in early to try and build rapport with some of the guys that she hadn't yet won over.

"More coffee anyone?" she asked as she got up to pour herself another cup. Mike Linker, the C-shift engineer nodded and raised his empty coffee cup. Sam walked over and filled it.

"Thanks," he said. "I heard you did a helluva job the other day. Made a tough save."

"I got lucky." Sam said.

"How's the girl?" he asked.

"I haven't heard. She had a pretty good case of smoke inhalation, but you know how resilient kids are. She's probably fine."

"I hope so. You still sound a little hoarse yourself."

"Well it's better than it was. I sounded like the love-sick frog from hell a couple of days ago!"

Sam's choice of words and tone of voice caused JJ, the senior paramedic, to spit coffee across the table showering Mike in the process.

"Damn Merker! I've had my shower today thanks!" growled Linker over the laughter of the rest of the crew.

"Looks like you missed a few spots!" quipped JJ's partner, Dave Martin. Everyone laughed again.

"What's so funny? " asked John Gage, surprising everyone with his uncharacteristically early entrance.

"Ask the frog princess!" Mike growled.

Johnny looked confused. Not getting an explanation from anyone he glanced Sam's way. She just shrugged and made a face.

"What brings you in so early, Gage?" asked Merker.

"Can't a guy come in early if he wants to?" he asked, defensively.

"Sure, why not?" asked Mike Stoker who happened to walk in just then too.

"Geez! What's with you guys on A shift? Is there something happening we don't know about?" Asked Dave.

Mike, Sam and Johnny all looked at each other and shrugged. Mike poured himself a cup of coffee then took it with him as he left the room. Johnny, seeing the pot was nearly empty, took it upon himself to start the next pot. Then he sat down to enjoy his coffee over the sports section of the morning paper.

C-shift left the dayroom shaking their heads. Sam sat down next to Johnny. "Ok, Johnny. What's the scoop really?" she asked him.

"You'll know soon enough." He said. "This is gonna be good." He had a sly grin on his face.

"I can hardly wait." She said, hoping secretly that it wasn't a surprise for _her_.

After a while Marco and Cap came in looking for coffee. Cap was quite surprised to see Johnny there so early. Usually he and Chet competed for last place in arriving at the station. "Morning fellas… er…" he stammered.

"Cap, "fellas is fine! Please don't walk on egg shells on my account, Sir." Sam insisted.

Hank flashed her a sheepish grin. "Okay, fella's it is then." He said.

"Hi guys!" Chet entered the day room with a glowing smile. He was carrying a large pink envelope and holding it near his nose, breathing in the scent it apparently had on it.

"What's that?" asked Marco.

"It's a card." Answered Chet, offering no other explanation.

"We can see that, you twit." Said Cap. "Who's it for?"

"It's for me!" answered Chet. When everyone just stared at him, he added. "It's from my secret admirer."

"You have a secret admirer?" asked Marco. "How do you rate?"

"Well Marco, like I'm always telling Gage here, some people got it, some people don't. Just so happens, I got it!"

"Got what?" asked Sam.

"You know," said Johnny. "Whatchamacallit!"

"Yeah," said Chet. "Charisma! And I got it!"

"Well, weather you got it or you don't, roll call is in two minutes. And what is all that banging and clanging?" Hank said.

There were several loud bangs and clangs and other odd noises. They were coming from the locker room. The A-shift crew got up and walked over to the locker room, Sam holding back just in case so she wouldn't embarrass another fireman. When they walked in they saw Mike Stoker, closing a curtain that was hanging from the ceiling at the beginning of the first aisle.

"What in the world?" asked Cap.

"Just trying to help, Cap. I put this curtain up so we could have a little privacy. If Sam moves her locker to this front row and all of A shift moves out of this section, she'll have privacy behind the curtain and we'll have privacy in the next row. She won't need to come in any farther."

"Damn." Said Sam. "Now I'm gonna miss out on all the fun." She had a grin on her face when she said it and looked Mike directly in the eye. Nobody knew about their previous mishap, but Mike turned red just the same.

"Good thinking, Stoker. That should work. Now everybody, it's time for roll call."

Roy came racing in just as everyone lined up. He was not yet in uniform.

Johnny looked questioningly at his partner who just held his hand up because he didn't dare give an explanation while his captain was speaking. After Hank had given out announcements and duty assignments he dismissed his men. "…and DeSoto, before you change into your uniform and start on that latrine, my office!" Hank directed.

"Right Cap." Roy said, quickly heading that direction. When both men were in the office, Hank closed the door, waving Roy to the chair in front of the desk. Roy sat down and gave his captain his full attention.

"Roy, anything the matter, Pal?" he asked. "It's certainly not like you to come in late and be unprepared at roll call."

"Sorry Cap," he answered. "I was all ready to leave this morning and Jo hadn't woke the kids for school or started breakfast or anything. She's been a little under the weather lately. I had to wake the kids and make sure they were getting ready for school and wake her back up. I took her temperature but she didn't have a fever. In fact it was a shade low. I'm not really sure what's going on with her. Anyway, that's why I'm late. I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry to hear Joanne's not feeling well. When you call her later, give her my well wishes. And try not to be late again. Oh, and when you step out, look like you've been appropriately reprimanded. I wouldn't want the guys to think I let you off easy or anything."

"Right, Cap." Roy grinned. "And thanks."

"Don't mention it."

A few hours later, after most of the daily chores were completed, Cap was drilling his men on staging of emergency scenes when a civilian woman and child entered the day room.

"Excuse me… Sorry to interrupt," said the woman. "We were just looking for that woman fireman… Is… Is this a bad time?"

"No, no, not at all." Hank assured her. "We were just getting ready to take a break anyway, weren't we fellas?" he said. Everyone murmured agreement, relieved by the unexpected break.

"How can we help you?" Hank asked.

Even as Hank continued to speak with the woman, Sam was out of her seat and went to the little girl. She squatted down to meet her eye level.

"Sara, right?" she asked, smiling brightly. The young girl nodded.

"You're the firelady that saved me." The little girl stated.

"Yes, I am the firefighter that saved you, and these guys here with me are the team that helped me do it. How are you feeling?"

"I'm better. I couldn't really talk for a while but I can talk now. Thank you for saving me. That was really scary but you weren't scared."

"Oh, you better believe I was scared!" corrected Sam. "But I knew I couldn't think about that because you needed me."

"I told all my friends at school that a firelady saved me and they didn't believe me. They said ladies can't be firemen."

"Well, you just tell them they are wrong and that I said ladies can be anything they want to be."

"I'll tell them, but they won't believe me." Said Sara.

Hank and Mrs. Manke walked over to Sara and Sam. Mrs. Manke addressed her. "Ms. Anderson is it?" she asked.

"Please, call me Sam."

"Sam, we came by because we just wanted to say thank you for not giving up on us. I understand there were others who got me out and I wanted to thank them too."

"Well, let me introduce you to them." The rest of the guys were hanging out, glad to see that their efforts at work had paid off well for this family. Sam pointed out her partners. "This is firefighter/paramedic Roy DeSoto and this is firefighter/paramedic John Gage."

"Hello," Mrs. Manke said shaking first Roy's then Johnny's hand.

"Good to see you under better circumstances," said Roy. "How's your head? I guess when we kicked in the door you took a pretty good blow."

Without thinking about it she rubbed her head as she answered. "My head is better now. I had quite a headache for a few days, but it was a small price under the circumstances. Thank you… It seems so shallow, like it isn't enough."

"Ma'am, believe me, just seeing you and your daughter here today is more than thanks enough." Johnny assured the woman.

She smiled back at him at a loss for words. Sara was patting her leg trying to get her attention. She looked down at her daughter to acknowledge her. "Mommy, are you gonna ask them?" She pleaded.

"Ask us what?" said Sam. "Is there some way we can help you?"

"Well… I'm a teacher, " she started tentatively. "I teach first grade. My daughter is one of my students and I thought maybe… if it wouldn't be too much trouble… maybe you and your partners could come visit our class."

Sam looked towards her Captain who was smiling and nodded her direction. "I can't speak for my partners, but, I'd be honored to." Said Sam.

"It would by my pleasure," Roy added.

"Sounds like a great idea," Johnny chimed in just as the tones sounded.

**Squad 51 woman down, difficulty breathing. Quick Stop Grocery corner of 9****th**** and Fairview. Time out 11:48.**

"Sorry, we've gotta go. Thanks for coming by." Sam said as she quickly headed for the squad. "Mike, will you get their contact info for us please?" she added as she climbed in. A few short seconds later the squad was gone.

When the squad pulled up to the grocery store, a clerk ushered them right in. "This way! She's in here! I don't think she's breathing!"" the woman was frantic.

"Awright, just calm down. We're here to help her now." Johnny tried to calm her a little as they hustled through the store to a back room. The manager had gotten her to the employee break room to sit down.

Sam took one look at the woman and knew it was bad. She was cyanotic and gasping, unable to get adequate air in. She put her stethoscope in her ears and put her hand on the woman's shoulder.

"My name's Sam. I'm a paramedic and I'm just gonna take a listen here, okay? I want you to try and relax. We're going to take good care of you." The frightened woman nodded as Sam placed the bell of the stethoscope on her chest. Sam frowned as she listened. A high pitched wheeze. Better than no sound at all, but still not good.

Roy set up the oxygen mask and placed it over the woman's face. Then he began taking the woman's blood pressure. Johnny called Rampart from the biophone.

"Rampart, this is Squad 51."

"Go ahead 51" came a female voice with a pronounced accent.

"Rampart, we have a female, approximately 30 years old, 135 pounds. She's pale, cyanotic and having difficulty breathing. Vitals are…" he looked at Roy.

"BP is 130 over 90, Pulse is 95, respirations are rapid and shallow." Roy informed. Johnny relayed the information to Rampart.

"We have started her on O2, Rampart."

The patient was not improving with the O2. Her gasping for air became more frantic. Sam could not hear air passing when she listened with her stethoscope. While Johnny reported her condition to Rampart, the patient suddenly stopped breathing and slumped over. Sam caught her to keep her from falling out of the chair.

"Rampart stand by!" Johnny barked into the mic. He dropped it quickly and jumped to assist Sam and Roy. The three of them moved the patient from the chair to the ground.

Johnny went back to the biophone. "Rampart, patient is in respiratory arrest!"

"Insert esophageal airway and ventilate, 51." Doctor Varner ordered.

"Inserting esophageal airway now, Rampart." Johnny confirmed.

"Airway kit!" Roy ordered. Sam snatched it up and gave it to Roy. She then went for the monitor and she and Johnny patched her in. Roy pulled out a tube, slid a stylet in and attached a syringe to the end. Kneeling by the patient's head Roy put the blade between her teeth sweeping her tongue to the left and lifting up. Unable to see anything he grabbed the tube, illuminating her throat. Still he saw nothing.

"Come on!" he growled in frustration. "We need to start CPR!" Sam jumped into action. Roy tried again, lifting higher. There! He saw the white cords. He passed the tube angling downwards toward the cords. Trying to get a better view of them he told Johnny to give him some pressure.

Johnny pushed down just below the Adam's apple on the cricoid cartilage. This caused the cords to drop down into view. This time when Roy banged the tube against the white cords he felt something give way. "I'm in!" he exclaimed and let out a loud breath of air. Roy inflated the cuff, securing and sealing the tube in the trachea.

Johnny prepared the ambu-bag while Roy secured the other end of the tube with a tube holder. Johnny then connected the ambu-bag and squeezed while Roy listened for lung sounds with his stethoscope. He was relieved to hear lung sounds over the left. Checking right he heard them there too. He listened over her belly. Nothing. Success!

That taken care of, Roy looked at the monitor. All he saw was a wavy rhythm of CPR. "Stop CPR," he ordered watching the monitor. The line went flat. "Start CPR!" Sam continued.

Johnny was back on the biophone. "Rampart, esophageal airway inserted and we are bagging her. She has gone into cardiac arrest. We have started CPR."

Doctor Varner ordered epinephrine and atropine and Johnny acknowledged as Roy jabbed a sixteen gauge needle into the patients jugular vein. Blood flashed back in the chamber and he hooked up the line. Johnny handed him a dressing and he taped it down. Roy grabbed the epinephrine, popping the yellow caps off and fired them through the line, one after another, throwing some atropine down as well.

"Come on!" he demanded of his patient. "Come back!" He glanced at the monitor. "Stop CPR." He ordered. There was a rhythm. He felt for a pulse and got nothing. "Resume CPR!" Johnny took over for Sam.

Roy fired more epinephrine in through the line and was rewarded as his patient's color started to pink up. "Stop CPR" he ordered once again. The monitor showed movement and the patient was breathing. "Let's get her out of here, fast."

The ambulance had arrived some time before and the attendants had waited patiently with baited breath as they watched the paramedics do their jobs. Johnny reported back to Rampart as the patient was loaded onto the gurney. "Rampart, patient now has a pulse and is breathing on her own. We are preparing to transport."

"10-4 51. Good job. Transport as soon as possible and continue monitoring."

"10-4 Rampart. We're on our way. ETA about 10 minutes."

"10-4 51."

Johnny rode in with the patient. Sam and Roy packed up the remainder of the equipment and then followed them in the squad.

"That was a close one," Sam said to Roy after a minute or so on the road.

"Yeah. Yeah it was." Roy acknowledged.

After a few minutes more silence Roy said to Sam, "You did real good. You're gonna be a fine paramedic."

***The medical scene was based on a medical scene I read about in a book called "Rescue 471, A Paramedic's Stories," by Peter Canning. I am sure protocols from the book I based the scene on are different from those of the 70's when Emergency! actually took place, but as this story is for entertainment purposes only, it doesn't have to be perfect. **

**Sorry I took so long to post this chapter, RL got in the way, again! I hope you enjoyed it and please, leave me a little feedback. I live for it! Thanks. -Hotflash**


	21. Chapter 21

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 21**

At dinner, the fire station was uncharacteristically quiet. It had been a pretty busy afternoon of mostly motor vehicle accidents, requiring both the squad and the engine. Hunger beat out the need to socialize until bellies were full. Johnny was the last hold out, still eating after all the others had long since pushed their plates away.

"You must have two hollow legs!" commented Sam.

"Remember, he's a growing boy!" Roy said.

Johnny polished off the last of the food that Sam had prepared for them that evening. "Sam, that was great! I haven't had chicken curry that good since… well… never. I've never had chicken curry that good!"

"That _was_ pretty amazing." Agreed Marco. "I'm glad I didn't miss it."

"Why would you have missed it?" asked Sam.

"We were supposed to be off, Chet and I remember? But the guys that were supposed to cover us both got sick."

"Oh, Marco, Chet, I forgot about that. I felt badly about your reprimand. I know it was all in good fun. You know I wasn't offended, right?"

"We know that Sam." Said Chet. "But the Cap and the Chief were right. It really could have been ugly. It just kind of got away from us."

"So long as everyone learned from it. That's what's important." Hank stated. Just then the phone rang. Johnny jumped up before anyone else could.

"I'll get it." He bounded over to the phone. "Fire Department, Station 51. Fireman Gage speaking… Oh, Hi!… " Johnny broke out in his typical crooked smile. "Our day? Oh it was fine. Kinda busy, but except for one call, none too serious. How's your day been? Good. Good, I'm glad. Okay now… okay. I love you too. Thanks for calling. Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow. Goodnight now." Johnny hung up. He turned back around to see six pairs of eyes watching him. He turned a little red and he sat back down with a huge grin on his face.

"John, that sounded kind of serious." Cap noted. Johnny wasn't often heard saying 'I love you' because he usually wasn't with the same woman for more than a few dates.

"As a matter of fact, Cap, it _is_ serious." Johnny answered.

"What do you mean? She's actually going to let you take her on a _third_ date?" Teased Chet. "That'd be a first!"

"Ha ha! Very funny! We've gone on lots of dates!" He said, indignantly. "I've actually come to a very serious decision. I'm going to ask Sharon to marry me."

There were a few moments of stunned silence. Chet finally broke it. "Now wait a minute, Johnny. You remember what happened last time you proposed to that one broad? You thought sure she was the one, remember? Are you sure there aren't any skeletons or should I say, brats in the closet this time?" Chet wasn't trying to be mean; he truly cared about Johnny and didn't want to see his friend get hurt.

"I'm _sure_ Chet! Sharon's a great girl. I've never felt more sure of anything."

"Congratulations, Johnny." Said Roy, slapping his partner on the back. "I think Sharon's gonna be terrific for you."

"Congratulations, John." Cap said. All the others congratulated him as well.

"How are ya gonna ask her, Johnny?" asked Sam.

Johnny raised one eyebrow at her and waited a second before answering. "Well, actually, I don't really know yet. I've been trying to figure that out. I want it to be… original. Maybe you guys have some ideas." Johnny looked at his "family" to see what they might say.

"Don't ask me, amigo. I've never asked anybody to marry me."

"Well, I have, but she didn't say yes, so don't ask me." Mike said.

"How did you do it, Cap?" asked Johnny.

"Well, on the day I was going to propose, I went to pick Em up to take her to dinner. I had reservations at a really nice restaurant but when we got there, there was a sign on the door saying they were sorry for the inconvenience but they were closed. Seems they were dealing with broken pipes or something like that. With our plans ruined, we couldn't either one seem to come up with a good place to eat. We sat in my car talking for a while and then somehow we came up with this crazy idea. I told her to pick a number from one to ten. She chose nine because I was working at nines at the time. We gave ourselves a twenty-minute time limit. The plan was that I would drive and at every ninth intersection she would flip a coin. Heads I turned left and tails I turned right. When the twenty minutes were up we had to choose the nearest restaurant and eat there."

"Did you end up somewhere nice, Cap?" asked Chet.

"Nope."

"Where'd you end up?" asked Marco.

"Would you believe, a corner hot dog stand?" asked Cap.

"No way! You didn't ask her there, did you Cap?" asked Chet.

"Nope."

"Well what'd you do?" asked Johnny.

"Well, we had dinner there. I didn't want to but she said a deal was a deal. We were all dressed up and everything. It was kind of awkward. But from there I carried out the rest of my original plan."

"What was that?" asked Mike, curious.

"Well, ya see, I had filled the trunk of my car with helium balloons. After dinner I drove us to the beach. It was kind of a cool evening and she was in a cocktail dress so I knew she would need a jacket or something. We got out of the car and we started to walk toward the water. I commented that she looked like she might be cold and she admitted that she was just a little. I knelt down to tie my shoe. It wasn't untied, but she didn't know that. I asked her if she would get my jacket out of the trunk and I handed her the keys. Then I watched her. She unlocked the trunk and opened it and all these balloons came out and floated up in the air. She let out a little scream and you should have seen the look on her face. "

"Then what happened?" asked Roy.

"Well, then she laughed and said what a surprise that had been. And then she looked back in the trunk for the jacket. When she looked inside she saw that there were two balloons I had weighted down with the words on them, 'Will you' and 'marry me?' Attached to the brick that I'd weighted them down with was the ring box."

"And the rest is history." Said Sam.

"The rest is _classified_!" Cap corrected.

"Man, that's a great story!" said Johnny. "This is gonna be harder than I thought."

"Hey Roy, Pal; you're a married man. Tell us how you proposed to Joanne." Cap requested.

"Well, it didn't start of so well for me either." He started. "It was the day I received my draft notice. I knew I had to tell her about it and that she wasn't going to be happy. But I wanted her to know that nothing was going to keep me from coming home to her. I recruited my friend Jack to help me. I called Joanne up and told her I needed to talk to her. I suggested we go for a drive and she agreed. Jack and I had worked out an itinerary for the drive and he went ahead of me to set things up. When I picked Jo up I drove us to the school we both went to when we met. We talked in the car and I told her I had received my draft notice. She cried like I knew she would. I held her and we talked for a good half hour and I finally had her pretty well calmed down. I suggested we get some fresh air so we got out and took a walk on the playground. When we approached the swings, there was a balloon tied to one. On the balloon Jack had written 'pop me'."

"Why?" asked Chet, puzzled.

"Well, inside of the balloon was a note."

"What did it say?" asked Marco.

"Something like, 'When I first saw you I knew I'd never be the same. I loved getting to know you better as I walked you home.'"

"Then what?" asked Mike.

"Well, that was the clue to go to where she used to live. We got in the car and drove there and attached to the mailbox was another balloon."

"What did the note say?"

"It said, 'You are far more beautiful than any flowers I've ever brought you.' It was written on a card from the florist I used to go to."

"So you went to the florist?" asked Marco.

"What was there?" asked John.

"The shop was closed, but on the door was another balloon. The message said, 'Your love is sweeter than the malts we have shared.'"

"So you took her to where you shared the malts." Cap concluded.

"Yeah, I took her to the diner. It's where we had our first date. (If you can call it that in fourth grade.)"

"What was in the balloon there?" asked Sam.

"There wasn't one." Roy stated, matter of fact-like.

"Well what'd you do?" the suspense was killing Mike.

"We ordered a malt."

"That's it? You just ordered a malt?" asked Chet.

"How'd you pop the question already?" asked Johnny. "That's what this was supposed to be about."

"I'm getting to that," said Roy. "When the malt came to the table, hooked over the stem to the cherry on top of the whipped cream was the ring."

"Tell the rest, you twit. Don't leave us hanging."

"Ok, Cap. When she saw the ring she turned white. Her mouth dropped open and she was speechless. I took the ring off the malt, rinsed it in my water glass and dried it with a napkin then I took her hand and put it on her finger. I told her I loved her and that I had loved her from the very day we met. I told her I needed her to be strong for me and wait for me. Then I asked her if she would and she said yes. I got down on one knee and said to her, 'Joanne Wilson, you are the most beautiful woman in the world and I love you more than I ever thought anyone could love. Will you please marry me?' Then she burst into tears and kept saying yes over and over. She hugged me and cried for a half an hour after that!"

"That was beautiful, man." Said Mike, rubbing his eye as though there was something in it. The stoic engineer didn't want the guys to see the tear that almost slipped down his cheek. He needn't have worried. Most of them had the same problem.

"Man, how am I ever going to compete with that?" Lamented Johnny. "All the good stuff's already been done!"

"Don't worry Johnny. You'll think of something." Said Sam. Turning to Roy she said, "Wow, Bro, I never knew what a romantic you are."

Chet's and Marco's eyes got wide as they turned to look at Roy. "Bro? You mean like 'the brotherhood' Bro?'" Chet asked.

"No!" Mike said. "Roy's Sam's brother!" Mike said it like it was a well-known fact, which it was for everyone present except Marco and Chet.

"No way!" said Chet.

"Way!" Sam and Roy responded in unison, rolling their eyes.

"Well, that _does_ explain a few things." Marco noted.

"Like what?" asked Roy.

"Like how you both bite your lip when you're nervous." Answered Marco.

"And how you both roll your eyes at my jokes!" Added Chet. This brought eye rolls from the entire crew.

"And why things were so awkward between you and Roy when you first came here." Marco noted, facing Sam.

"Wait a minute!" Chet interrupted.

"So how come this isn't a surprise to all of you?" Chet demanded.

"Because we're firemen!" Cap said.

Chet and Marco both raised their eyebrows and shot him a quizzical look.

"We're paid to be observant," Hank elaborated. "Guess you two are just slipping."

***Thanks to those of you who sent me ideas on proposals. I got some good laughs out of them. I found another source, online and then tweaked things to my taste. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I know I did. Thanks again to Kathey'sSis who reminded me that Chet and Marco were supposed to be on suspension. Oops!) Please leave me feedback. Thanks for reading. -Hotflash**


	22. Chapter 22

Everything ChangesChapter 22

*Warning: This chapter contains pain and reference to violence

Sharon was especially tired after working the graveyard shift. She still hadn't gotten used to working rotating shift schedules and graveyard was always the hardest on her. When she got home she took a fast shower, brushed her teeth, towel dried her hair and slipped into a soft, silky nightgown. She climbed into bed and lay there thinking of her handsome paramedic. Johnny had been very patient with her, she thought. She felt like she constantly sent him mixed messages. She loved being with him and loved how it felt to be in his arms, to be touched with his gentle hands, to be kissed by him. She couldn't get enough of him, yet she always found herself holding back, slowing him down. But the more she thought of Johnny, the less she wanted to hold back, and it scared her. She had been hurt before and she was afraid of allowing it to happen again.

Sharon tried to tell herself that she was being silly. Johnny would never hurt her. He was kind and compassionate. It was what made him a good paramedic, and what had attracted her to him in the first place. She saw how much he cared about the patients he brought in to Rampart. She had heard him ask about patients whenever he was there. She saw how disappointed and upset he got when he found out one didn't' make it and how personally he took it when that happened. Johnny simply wasn't the kind of man to hurt anyone. She just couldn't shake the fear of being hurt again, and Johnny had no idea about any of those feelings within her. I have to tell him, she thought. I have to tell him I'm afraid and I have to tell him why.

For right now, she didn't want to think about it anymore. She wanted to think good thoughts and get some sleep. Feeling somewhat insecure she hugged her pillow wishing it were Johnny. She tried to visualize herself wrapped in his arms. With that warm thought in her mind she finally closed her eyes and let sleep come to her.

Johnny was the first to leave the station when B shift came to relieve the crew. He was a man on a mission. He spent most of his morning driving from one jewelry store to the next looking for the perfect item. He saw many beautiful things but nothing that spoke to his heart saying, "This is the one." Feeling rather frustrated he was about to give up. He turned to leave the jewelry store and literally bumped into a saleswoman, knocking her down.

"Oh, I'm sorry Ma'am. Are you alright?" he asked. "You're not hurt anywhere are you?"

She looked up at the tall, handsome customer and blushed. "I… I think I'm okay."

Johnny squatted down beside her. "Are you sure? Does anything hurt?" he asked her.

"Just my pride," she admitted.

"Here, let me help you up. I didn't mean to bump into you. I feel really badly about this." He held out his hands to her and when she took them he pulled her gently to her feet.

"My fault entirely. I was standing close to you and you couldn't possibly have known I was there. Your back was to me."

"Still, I…" Johnny stopped in mid sentence. He raised an eyebrow as he thought for a moment. "Why… why were you so close to me?" he asked.

The woman blushed again. "I saw that you were not finding what you were looking for. I thought maybe I could help. The associate that was helping you is new and she doesn't always have the confidence she needs to talk to customers about custom jewelry. I was going to help her and you out."

"Oh, well, thanks. Sorry I knocked you down. So… you can do custom jewelry here? I bet that's pretty expensive."

"No, not really. It depends on what you want of course, but we don't charge extra for custom designing. Our rates are based on the actual value of the materials used in a custom piece; much in the same way we price our stock pieces. You might be surprised. What exactly are you looking for?" She asked.

"Well, you see… " Johnny didn't know her name. He looked at her name tame tag. "Ann, I've been dating this girl and she's… well, she's, you know… the one and I want to find her something special to show her I love her. I was thinking… " Johnny told her what he had in mind. A half hour later, he left the jewelry store whistling a happy tune as he climbed back into his rover and headed over to Sharon's place.

Johnny was on cloud nine. When he had explained to Ann what he was after, she had shown him a few pieces that were not on display and were being kept in the back room. They had been custom ordered by a very affluent customer and then the customer had changed their mind. Ordinarily custom orders were paid for up front upon ordering and were non-refundable, but more affluent customers who provided repeat business were sometimes given a certain amount of leeway. In this case it had been a stroke of good luck for Johnny. He got what he wanted and he didn't have to wait the two weeks that it took for most custom orders to be made and delivered to the showroom. He couldn't have been happier with his purchase than if he had been the designer.

Next stop, an expensive restaurant. Johnny chose a quiet little Italian place he had been to a time or two before. He hoped it was not too late to get reservations for the evening. When he walked in the hostess greeted him cheerfully.

"Good afternoon, Sir. Do you have a reservation?"

"Uh, no. No, not yet I mean. I was hoping you had reservations available for later this evening."

"For how many sir?"

"Two."

"Yes sir, we have a few tables available for the evening." She looked at the reservation list. "I have a 5:30 and a 7:00 reservation available. Would either of those work for you?" she asked.

"The seven o'clock reservation would be great!" he answered.

She took down his name and wrote it on the reservation list. Before he left he asked her, "Now, whom can I speak to about a few special arrangements?"

Another half hour later, Johnny was all set. His evening was planned. He went home, showered and changed his clothes. Then he headed to Sharon's apartment.

Sharon awoke to the sound of knocking on her door. At first she thought it was part of her dream but as the knocking continued, she awoke more fully and realized it wasn't. She looked over at her clock. Three O'clock? "Damn it!" she cursed. "I forgot to set my alarm." She got up quickly and grabbed a robe, throwing it on and tying it closed as she headed for the door. "Just a minute!" she shouted.

Before she opened the door she stopped and took a deep breath to settle herself. She looked through the peephole, just to be sure it was Johnny, then she opened the door. "Johnny, Hi. Sorry. I guess I forgot to set my alarm."

Johnny smiled at her. She had on no makeup so her freckles were very apparent. Her hair was wild. Her eyes were sleepy. All he could think of was how beautiful she was. And how much he wanted her. He stepped inside and closed the door. "You must have needed the sleep," he said. "Have I told you today how beautiful you are?" he asked, embracing her.

Sharon blushed and turned her head downward. "Don't be silly. I'm a mess!"

Johnny gently lifted her chin to look into her eyes. "No… I mean it. You are very beautiful, just the way you are." Then he leaned down to kiss her.

His lips were like his hands, soft and warm. Sharon felt herself melt into Johnny's arms as she returned his kiss. His warmth flooded through her and she felt as if she were floating. At first she gave in completely to the kiss, returning it with passion fueled by intense desire. But after a moment she regained her senses and gently broke it off. She buried her head in his chest and squeezed onto him knowing she was asking too much of him to stop.

Johnny didn't try to stop her as she pulled back. When she squeezed her arms tighter around him he let his head rest on the top of hers and quietly held her. He knew she was dealing with some sort of inner struggle and he was determined he was going to let her get through whatever it was without any pressure from him. They stood that way for what seemed a long time, but Johnny knew it was only a couple of minutes. Then he felt her start to shudder and heard her start to cry.

"Baby, no, don't cry." Johnny soothed, stroking her hair. "It's okay. Whatever's wrong will be okay." He gently rocked her as he held her. When her crying didn't subside he scooped her up and took her to the couch, sitting the two of them down. He held her on his lap with her head on his shoulder and continued to try and comfort her with soothing whispers. It pained him greatly to see her so unhappy and he ached to make it all go away, whatever it was that had her so upset. After what felt like forever to both of them her crying slowed and then finally stopped. Neither of them said anything. Johnny just continued to hold her and stroke her hair as she got her breathing back under control and started to finally relax. Just when he thought she might have actually fallen asleep she whispered to him.

"I'm sorry Johnny. You don't deserve this."

Johnny repositioned so that the two of them could look at each other's faces. "Sharon, I don't deserve what?" he asked.

"This… me… I'm broken. I'm confused. I'm scared. I keep telling you yes and then turning around and telling you no."

"Sharon, if I… " Johnny started.

"NO! Johnny, It's not you. It's me. Really. I've been hurt and… and… I'm just afraid. I don't want it to happen again. I didn't mean for it to happen before. I… "

"Baby, what are you talking about? It's okay. I'm not going to hurt you. I promise… I'd never hurt you Sharon. I love you. Tell me what you're afraid of."

"You'll hate me." She turned away from him.

Johnny placed a hand on either side of her head gently and slowly turned her to look at him once again. Looking her in the eye he said to her softly, "There is nothing you could do now, in the future or could have done in the past that could ever make me hate you. What ever is hurting you, talk to me. We'll get through it together. Talk to me, Baby. Please."

"I… I was pregnant once." Sharon started and turned her eyes downward again.

Lifting her chin up again he said, "Okay. Do you want to tell me about it?" She nodded slowly as another tear slid down her cheek. Johnny wiped it away with the knuckle of his right pointer finger and pulled her back into his lap to hold her closely while she shared her hurts with him. "Okay, what happened?"

"I was nineteen. I was in my second year of college and I had been dating Mark for almost nine months. I really loved him and I thought that we might get married some day. He never said as much but sometimes he would talk about us being together like it would be forever." Sharon started then was quiet for a minute. Johnny waited patiently, just holding her and softly caressing her arm.

"He wanted to do things I wasn't ready to do. I mean… I wanted to, but… I just thought it was wrong. I thought we should wait… He kept pressuring me. He said marriage was a piece of paper that the government issued. All it was was just a way to collect more revenue… that's why you needed a license to get married."

Johnny's mind was racing. He knew where this was going. He felt the anger welling up inside of him and had to fight to keep his body language from betraying him. He needed to remain calm and relaxed so Sharon would know she was safe. In his mind he counted to ten. He tried to control his breathing, keeping it even. "You're okay. You're safe here," Johnny whispered.

"Finally I told him I would. He promised he wouldn't hurt me. He told me it would be special and I believed him." Sharon lowered her head again. Johnny didn't lift her chin this time, he just held her and continued caressing her arm softly. "We had a nice date. He took me to dinner, bought me flowers. Then he brought me back to his apartment. I was getting really nervous and I told him I didn't feel well. I told him I wanted to go home, that I just wasn't ready." Sharon began to sob again. Johnny wanted to hurt someone. He thought of his training days at the academy. It was the best way he knew to control the breathing. _SCBA mask on_. _Breathe in through the nose. Out through the mouth. _ Johnny's visualization worked for him and he managed to stay relaxed, outwardly but on the inside he was raging.

"You're safe." Johnny whispered it to her again. Sharon took a deep breath and continued. "He…" Sharon couldn't bring herself to use the legal description. She tried but she just couldn't. She finally gave up trying. "…He forced me."

Johnny's heart shattered in a million pieces when she said it. Somehow he contained the anger within but the pain he felt for her escaped as tears fell down his own face.

"I tried to stop him. He was… too strong. When it was over I was black and blue. My eyes, my face, my arms… I hurt everywhere. He finished and then he got up and left me on the bed. I was afraid to move. Later he… he came back and told me to get dressed. He said he was sorry. He said I just led him on, I let it go too far."

"Sharon, you have to know that it _wasn't your fault!_" Johnny stated emphatically.

Sharon didn't respond to his words. She simply continued. "I got pregnant. He kept coming around and trying to do nice things for me, saying he was sorry. But when I told him about the baby… he got really mad. He wanted me to get an abortion. But… I… I couldn't. He said he'd kill me. I said I'd do it."

Johnny gently wrapped his arms more tightly around her. "It's over with. I still love you. This doesn't change that." Johnny said the words deliberately and firmly but in a gentle tone.

Sharon pulled away from him so she could look him in the eye. "I didn't do it, Johnny. I didn't kill my baby. I told him I had an abortion then I moved away."

"Where from?" Johnny asked.

"From Portland."

"Oregon?" Johnny clarified. Sharon nodded.

"Where's your baby?" Johnny asked with a smile.

"With my Aunt Tania… In Los Angeles. She helped me through the pregnancy and then I appointed her temporary guardianship. I see them as often as I can. Usually once or twice a month I get to visit. Either she'll bring my baby to me or I'll go to my Aunt's."

"What is your baby's name?" Johnny asked.

"Rebecca. Rebecca Maureen Walter." Sharon spoke her baby's name with more confidence than any of the conversation she had preceded it with.

"How old is she?"

"She's eighteen months."

"Can I meet her?" he asked.

Sharon inhaled sharply, surprised. "You… you want… to meet her? Why?"

"Because she's a part of you. You go together." He smiled as he looked into her eyes and said those words. "I told you, Sharon, I love you. I want to meet your little girl."

"You don't… think differently of me?" She asked.

"Yes. Yes, Sharon. I love you _more_ because you _survived_ this. You're strong. Something terrible happened and you let something beautiful become of it."

For the first time since she had greeted him that day, she smiled. "You still want to be with me, even though I have Becca? You're sure?"

"I'm sure. I'm sure, Sharon. I… I have something for you. I was gonna give it to you later. But… I want to give it to you now. Are you ready?" Johnny reached into his pants pocket. He took out a small box and placed it in Sharon's hand. She looked up at him, eyes threatening to spill over again. "Open it."

Slowly Sharon opened the box. Inside the box was a small velvet jewelry box. She held her breath and slowly opened it. The floodgates opened wide with tears of joy when she saw the beautiful heart shaped locket inside. It was 18 karat gold framed with small diamonds and sapphires and in the center of the cover was sapphire heart. She held it up from the beautiful diamond cut gold chain it was on. It glistened beautifully as the light hit the gemstones. "Johnny, It's so beautiful!" Sharon exclaimed.

"Not half as beautiful as you are." He answered her. "Open it."

Sharon opened the locket. Inside was inscribed, "forever" on one side and "I love you" on the other. Sharon was so touched and so happy that words wouldn't come so she wrapped her arms around Johnny's neck and hugged him with all she had in her. He hugged her back then asked permission to kiss her. She consented and kissed him without holding back this time. When their lips touched it was like a jolt of electricity ran through both of them. The fire inside them longed to be let out to burn brightly. They both indulged their passion for a long moment and then Johnny said, "Whoa, Baby. How 'bout some lemonade?" and they both laughed until they almost cried.

When the laughter had subsided Johnny looked at Sharon. "I made reservations for dinner at seven. I hope that's okay with you."

Sharon stole a peek at the clock before answering him. _Four o'clock. No problem. _"Seven o'clock is perfect," she said. "Let me take another shower and try to diminish these puffy eyes of mine." You can read the paper or watch TV or sit on the deck and spy on people in the park." Johnny grinned at her.

A few hours later the couple found themselves sitting inside of a cozy Italian restaurant at a table for two. As Sharon looked over her menu, she noticed a strange phenomenon. Every so often a letter was underlined and highlighted. Looking at her menu, Sharon noticed that several letters had this done to them and she got curious. "I'll bet it means something." She said out loud.

Johnny cocked an eyebrow and looked at her. "What?"

"The underlined and highlighted letters."

"What underlined and highlighted letters." He asked

"You know, on the menu. Every now and then a letter is underlined and highlighted. What do you think it means?" She said.

"Where are you looking? I don't see anything." Johnny told her.

Sharon reached across the table and took Johnny's menu from him. She scanned over it quickly. "Well, that's strange. It's only on mine." She handed her menu to Johnny.

Johnny looked it over. "Huh. I wonder what it means." He handed the menu back to Sharon.

The waitress came to take their orders. They both knew what they wanted and ordered but Sharon asked to hang on to her menu a bit longer.

"Certainly Ma'am." Said the waitress.

When she had left to put the order in to the kitchen Sharon told Johnny, "This has to mean something." She took out a pen and paper from her purse and started writing the letters down.

M-O-S-T

There were even spaces between words underlined and highlighted.

B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L_S-H-A-R-O-N

Sharon looked at Johnny and saw he was watching her with a huge crooked grin. "You did this!" His eyes sparkled as he slowly nodded once. Sharon smiled a beautiful smile and continued decoding her secret message.

_I_L-O-V-E_Y-O-U_F-O-R-E-V-E-R

"Oh, Johnny, I love you, too! I do. You make me so happy!" Sharon said, tears spilling down her face.

"Oh, Baby, don't cry. You'll run your makeup." He told her. "You make me happier than I ever thought possible." He took her hand from across the table and the two of them held hands, talking and enjoying their evening together; both happier than either ever remembered feeling at any other time in their lives.

***Thank you for continuing to follow this story. Please feel free to leave comments and feedback. It is very encouraging to me and sometimes gives me direction in my story. Thanks. -Hotflash**


	23. Chapter 23

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 23**

***Warning: Mild adult situations**

Roy woke up early, before he would have had he been going to work that day. Without opening his eyes, he rolled over and reached for Joanne to pull her close and snuggle. All he found was an empty spot in the bed. It was still warm. At least she hasn't been gone long, he thought. Then he heard her. She was retching in the bathroom. He got up and hurried to her side. He gently rubbed her back.

"Is there anything I can do for you?" he said, softly.

"Towel." She answered between heaves.

Roy turned on the hot water at the sink and let it run while he got a small hand towel out of the bathroom cupboard. He held it under the warm water and then shut the water off and wrung out the towel. By the time he finished that Joanne had stopped retching. Roy kneeled down beside her and turned her face toward his. Gently he washed her face. Then he got up, took her by the arms and lifted her up off the floor. He wrapped his arms around her and held her. Joanne leaned into the hug letting Roy support most of her weight. She felt weak and tired. After a moment he scooped her up and carried her back to bed.

"Annie, I'm worried about you," he said, tucking her in. "Tell me about how you're feeling." He sat on the bed next to her and held her hand.

"Roy, I'm just so tired. And nauseated. And my back hurts."

Roy reached up and felt her forehead. It didn't seem warm to him. "This has been going on a while, honey. You not feeling well, I mean. You have been tired a lot. And what's it been, two weeks that you've been having heartburn constantly?"

"At least that." she answered.

"I think you should go to the doctor." Roy said.

"Okay. I'll go." Joanne knew he wasn't going to take no for an answer. He'd suggested it several times over the last week and she had more or less blown him off. But she wasn't feeling any better.

"I'm going to go fix you some tea. Do you want me to bring you anything else?" Roy asked her.

"No, thank you, Honey." She said. Roy leaned down and kissed her on the forehead before heading to the kitchen.

Roy came back a short while later with some tea and toast. Joanne sat up and Roy propped some pillows behind her. He put the tea and toast on her bedside table then he got back under the covers and sat beside her. "Are you feeling any better?" he asked her.

"A little." She said, before taking a sip of the tea. "It's almost time to get the kids up."

"Don't you worry about that. I'll take care of the kids. After your stomach feels a little more settled, I want you to get yourself ready. I'm taking you to the doctor today."

Joanne rolled her eyes before she took another sip of her tea and a nibble of her toast. Then she leaned toward Roy and rested her head on his shoulder. Roy readjusted, putting his arm around her and giving her a reassuring squeeze. "I love you, Annie."

"I know Roy. I love you too." She said. "You are a really wonderful husband. Have I told you that lately?"

"Yes, but you can always say it again any time you feel the need. I don't mind." He told her. "I think you are an absolutely amazing wife and a terrific mother. Thank you for putting up with me."

"Well you know, Roy. It can be difficult at times. But, I think you're well worth the effort." Joanne teased.

Roy gave her another squeeze. The two of them chatted a while as Joanne got her tea and toast down little by little and started to feel better. Then Roy got up to get the kids ready for school and Joanne headed into the shower.

Once Chris and Katie were safely on the school bus, Roy cleared the breakfast dishes and picked up the kitchen. Then he poured himself another cup of coffee, took it to the table along with the phone, sat down and dialed the number to his wife's doctor. Roy was happy to find that the doctor had an appointment available later that morning and he secured it for his wife.

After hanging up the phone, he heard Joanne coming down the stairs and a moment later she appeared in the kitchen. "Good morning, Beautiful!" he said brightly. "How are you feeling now?"

"Now I'm hungry." She said. "And your coffee smells wonderful!" She poured herself a cup and started poking through the refrigerator. She found some yogurt and brought it along with her coffee and a spoon to the table.

"I called Dr. Jenner's office for you. I got you the last appointment before their lunch; eleven thirty."

"Thank you. I could have made the call, but I appreciate your help." He was doing it again. Mr. Paramedic. It annoyed her only occasionally but this was one of those times. She knew he was only doing it because he loved her and that made it a little easier to deal with.

Roy could hear the slight tightness in her voice and knew she was somewhat annoyed. "Honey, I'm sorry." He said, hoping she wasn't too mad.

"It's okay. I know why you did it. I know I'm stubborn and I would have put it off. I still love you." She changed the subject. "We need some things around here. Can we go early and do a little shopping?"

"Sure. Whatever you want." He agreed.

****************

Sharon woke up that morning still smiling from her wonderful evening the night before. Her date with Johnny had been so romantic. She still felt like it wasn't real. She felt her neck and there against it, hanging from a chain was the locket he had given her. Sitting up, she reached up and unfastened the chain so that she could look at the beautiful piece. Holding it in her hand she admired its beauty. She opened it and re-read the inscription. "Forever. I love you." She loved him too, with all she had in her. She loved two people that much. Becca and Johnny. And now she couldn't wait for them to meet. The phone rang jolting her out of her thoughts.

"Hello?" she said as she picked up the phone from her bedside table.

"Am I mistaken or am I speaking to the most beautiful woman in all of LA County?" asked Johnny.

"Johnny, good morning!" Sharon answered with a shy giggle.

"Good morning yourself. I'm glad you're awake. I thought maybe we'd do a little rock climbing today. Are you up to that?"

"I've never done anything like that before." She said.

"It's fun. I'll teach you and I know a great spot. I have all the equipment. What do you say?"

"Okay. How long do I have to get ready?"

"Can you do it in an hour?"

Sharon cringed at the thought. She'd showered before bed so she could skip that. But she still had to do her makeup and she hadn't eaten yet. "That might not be enough time. I haven't done my makeup and I haven't had breakfast. I haven't even gotten out of bed yet."

"Aw, you can do it." Johnny encouraged. "I'll pick up some coffee and donuts on the way over. And you don't have to put makeup on to see me. I already know how beautiful you are."

Sharon couldn't even imagine leaving home without _some_ makeup. "Ok, Johnny. I'll try to hurry. But would you bring some fruit with those donuts too please? I want to be able to say I at least tried for healthy."

"You're on! See you soon." The two hung up and Sharon hustled to get ready. She did not skip her makeup.

Several hours later found the two lovebirds half way up the side of a low rock wall, not far from where they had spent a few previous adventures. Climbing was challenging and hard work. Sharon was enjoying it but she was becoming physically tired.

"You're doing great!" Johnny encouraged her. "We'll be up top before you know it."

"I can't wait." She said. "I never knew how hard this was. It looks a lot easier than it is. But I _am_ having fun."

"The hard work will be worth it when we get to the top." He promised.

A short while later she saw what he meant. From atop the rock wall the view was amazing. Johnny took his pack off of his shoulders and set it down. Then he took the lighter

pack he had asked Sharon to carry off of her shoulders and set it down as well. He took her into his arms and hugged her.

"You did it! You made it all the way up. Didn't I tell you it would be worth it? Just look at everything."

The two of them surveyed the hillside below them. The green and yellow foliage, the rocks, patches of wildflowers and the sheer beauty of the outdoors made a lovely picture. They sat down on the ground and Johnny held her as they took in the natural beauty and just enjoyed it a while. In the warmth of Johnny's arms Sharon marveled at the sound of the wind gently whispering through the trees below them and the birds making their little chirps and calls. Occasionally she would see a chipmunk or squirrel dart through the brush nearby.

Sharon turned her head over her shoulder to look at Johnny's face. "I like it here. It's peaceful."

He nodded. Then he kissed her gently. Sharon felt safe. She decided she wasn't going to hold Johnny back any more. She kissed back and didn't hold herself back either. The fire in her kiss surprised Johnny and he started to pull back. "Sha…"

Sharon pushed him down on the ground and continued kissing him. She let her hands start to explore and feel his broad strong chest. He felt so good. Johnny still wasn't sure of what she had in mind and found himself fumbling for what to do with his own hands. He finally placed them on her waist and slowly, tentatively slid them up her body to explore. They both felt like teenagers feeling each other up. Neither cared.

Johnny's hands felt good on Sharon's stomach as he slid them up her body. She felt excited and scared at the same time but she wanted to continue. She knew now that she could fully trust him. She couldn't help the little doubts that sometimes crowded her thoughts but made a conscious decision to ignore them and to allow herself to enjoy being in this place right now with the one man who made her happy beyond belief. As his hands slid higher she arched her back a little in anticipation of the warm sensations that she knew she would feel when he reached her breasts.

Johnny was enjoying Sharon's openness to moving their relationship to the next level. He was worried about her though. She was responding as though she was eager for him to explore and touch her but he worried that she would start to have fears. Before he moved his hands higher than her rib cage he stopped. He whispered, "Sharon. I love you. Are you okay with this?"

Nodding, Sharon reached to Johnny's hands and placed hers over his. She slid them up over her breasts giving Johnny's hands a little squeeze of reassurance then removed her hands to explore his chest some more. They spend the better part of the next twenty minutes making out and exploring each other's bodies through their clothes. Both wanted more and both knew that it would wait for another time, but they enjoyed what they shared together here and now. After a while they settled down to just holding each other and kissing. Then to just holding each other. Eventually they ended up lying on the ground with Johnny's arm around her and Sharon's head resting on his chest. They stayed that way until Johnny's arm fell asleep. Then he sat up pulling her up with him.

"That was fun." He said softly. "How are you doing?"

"Good." She said. "Part of me didn't want to stop."

"Me too. But there will be plenty of time for that later." He said. "Are you hungry?"

Sharon laughed. "That was a loaded question if I ever heard one."

Johnny actually blushed. His question had been completely innocent. "I meant…" He started to explain.

"I _know!_ Yes, I am kind of hungry."

"Good, I brought us some cheese and apples and crackers." Johnny got up to get the pack Sharon had carried and took out two Tupperware containers and a box of "chicken in a biscuit" crackers.

"I love those crackers!" Sharon exclaimed.

"I know. They're really good!" Johnny agreed. He reached into the pack again and surprised Sharon when he took out a bottle of sparkling cider and two plastic glasses. "I had a sheet in here to lay on the ground but we've kinda already rolled around in the dirt so I guess it doesn't really matter." He chuckled.

Sharon didn't care. She was enjoying the surprise picnic and spending time with the man she was sure was the love of her life. "So… " She started to ask. "Now that we've climbed up the rock face, how are we planning on getting back to the car?"

"That's what the ropes in my pack are for." He answered without elaborating.

"What do you mean?" she asked tentatively.

"Don't worry," he chuckled. "There's a trail right over there that will take us back down. There's one steep hillside that way and I'm going to teach you to rappel down." As he said it he saw the alarm on Sharon's face. "Don't worry. I know what I'm doing. Roy and I rescue people all the time and have to give them crash courses in rappelling." Even as he said it he realized it was a poor choice of words.

"I don't need a _crash_ course! I need a course in how NOT to crash!" She replied.

Johnny chuckled. "Don't worry, it will be fine." He promised.

When they had finished their lunch, Johnny gathered and packed everything into the pack. He put Sharon's pack back on her shoulders and his heavier pack back on his then they started out for the trail. Towards the end of the trail they came upon a pretty steep dirt hillside, just as Johnny had described earlier. Johnny got into the pack he had been carrying and pulled out ropes and equipment. Tying off to a sturdy tree he began to explain to Sharon how to rappel. He talked her through the steps, encouraged her and promised to stay right beside her to help her if she felt like she was in trouble.

"Are you ready?" he asked her.

"As ready as I'll ever be, I guess." She said doubtfully.

Johnny took a pair of gloves out of his pocket and tossed them to her. "Here, put these on." He took another pair out of his other pocket and put them on in preparation for their next adventure.

Sharon put the right glove on first and then put her hand into the second one. As she slid the glove over her hand and slipped her fingers into the fingers of the glove, she felt some resistance and her "lazy" finger on her left hand banged into something. Johnny noticed that she made a face and asked her, "Is everything alright?"

"There's something in my glove." She said and took the glove back off. She held it up close to her face and looked inside. It was too dark inside to see anything. She took the glove off of her other hand and reached inside to find what was inside. She located it easily and took it out. She looked at the foreign object in her hand and gasped. There in her hand was a gold ring. It had a large marquis solitaire diamond with a smaller traditional cut diamond on each side of the center of it. Between the traditional cut diamonds and the points of the marquis cut diamond were small marquis sapphires at an angle. The effect was kind of like a flower shape. It was exsquisite. When Sharon looked to Johnny she realized he had come up along side her and was now on one knee. Tears started silently falling down Sharon's cheeks.

"Sharon, I told you I will always love you, and I will. I will always cherish you. I will always take care of you. I will always be there for you, and for Becca. I cannot imagine the rest of my life without you right by my side. I promise you that when I go to work, I will do everything in my power to come home to you at the end of every shift. Baby, please… Will you do me the honor of becoming my lifelong partner… my soul mate… my wife?" Johnny held his breath waiting for her answer.

Sharon stared at Johnny, wide eyed. She didn't remember him taking her hands but she suddenly realized her hands were being held in his. His were shaking slightly. She looked at his face, so filled with hope. His warm brown eyes looked back at her, pleading with her to say yes. She stared in those liquid eyes a moment. Finally words came to her and she spoke.

"Johnny, I love you. I love you so much. I… I would be… _honored_ to be your wife!"

"Is that a yes?" Johnny needed to hear that word.

Sharon shook her head. "Yes! She said. "YES!" she nearly yelled. Now the whole world could hear her. "Yes, Johnny. I will marry you." Johnny slipped the ring over her finger and stood up. He lifted her hand to his face and kissed her finger in front of the ring.

Softly he whispered, "You won't be sorry. I promise!"

***Okay, finally, Johnny proposed! Just as I promised. I am leaving in two days for vacation. I will be spending just over five days with my brother at his home/fire station. I hope to have a few adventures of my own while I am gone. Unfortunately, I will not have computer or internet access while I am gone so it may be a while before you see any more updates. That's why I didn't leave you a cliffie! As always, I am looking forward to your feedback. Thanks for all the encouragement! -Hotflash**


	24. Chapter 24

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 24**

The waiting room was crowded and Roy felt a little uncomfortable as he waited for his wife. The only seat empty was the one next to him that Joanne had vacated. She had gone back to see the doctor nearly a half hour ago. _I wonder what's taking so long, _thought Roy.

"Excuse me sir…"

Roy realized he was being spoken to. He looked up at a very pregnant woman who was carrying a small child in her arms as well. "Ma'am?" he said to her.

"I asked is the seat next to you taken?" she repeated herself.

"No, no. Please, sit down." He said. He felt bad that he had apparently been in his own little world when she asked the first time. The woman slid a large diaper bag off of her shoulder and it landed with a thud on the floor. Then she shifted the child in her arms trying to figure out how to lower herself in the chair without losing her balance.

"Can I take him for you?" Roy asked, wanting to help. The woman looked at him for a minute trying to decide if he was safe or not. He sensed her hesitation. "I just want to help. My wife is back seeing the doctor right now."

The woman's eyes softened. She handed the boy over to Roy's open arms. "Hi there, little fella," he said. The child smiled at him. "What's his name?" asked Roy.

"Jimmy. He's almost one." She anticipated his next question.

"When's your baby due?" Roy asked just to make small talk.

"Yesterday. I wish it'd hurry up."

"Well, ya see, that's the thing about babies. They never listen to what the doctor says. They kind of keep their own agenda." Roy replied.

"Kind of like fathers!" She exclaimed back, clearly annoyed.

Roy looked down. What should he say to that? After a moment he looked back up. "I didn't catch your name," he said. "I'm Roy DeSoto."

"I'm Mary. Mary Silcox. Sorry about that crack about fathers. The babies' daddy left me two months ago. It's been rough."

"I'm sorry. Do you have anyone who can help you out?" Roy inquired. He couldn't imagine having to give birth with another small child to care for and no one to help.

"My sister's flying in from Nebraska later today. She couldn't come any sooner."

"Oh that's good." Roy was playing pat-a-cake with Jimmy and he was giggling with delight. He realized he missed having the real little ones at home.

Just then Joanne emerged from the back office. "I see you've made a friend." She said to her husband, smiling.

"This is Jimmy. And this is Jimmy's mom, Mary," he said nodding her direction. "Mary, this is my lovely wife, Joanne."

Joanne blushed and reached out to shake the other woman's hand. "Nice to meet you." She said.

Mary smiled. "Your husband was very kind to me. You're a lucky woman." She said.

"Roy is a wonderful husband and father. I _am_ lucky." Joanne agreed. She looked tired and Roy could see it in her eyes. He stood up and set the young boy on the seat. He told the boy to take good care of his mother as Joanne and he made their way across the office.

"So long, Ms. Silcox. Good luck to you." Roy said it over his shoulder on the way out.

"Thank you," she said just before the door closed behind them.

Roy took Joanne's hand as they walked out to his car. She didn't volunteer any information so he patiently waited to hear what the doctor had said. He was pretty sure he already knew.

Joanne was lost in her own thoughts. She and Roy definitely needed to talk but she wasn't sure he was going to like the conversation. She didn't want to start it so she waited patiently, knowing he would bring it up sooner or later.

When they reached the car Roy unlocked her door and helped her in. He closed the door then walked around to the driver's side and got in. After buckling his seatbelt he turned and looked at his wife's face. She looked stressed. "Are you alright, Annie?" he asked her.

She turned and looked into his concern filled blue eyes. Then she turned away without answering. Roy reached over and put his arm around her, pulling her toward him gently until she put her head on his shoulder. He gave her a sideways hug and they held that position a moment before she sat up. He watched her face and saw a tear silently slip down her left cheek.

"Hey Love, don't cry." He said. "I thought this would be a happy occasion."

She looked back at him with surprise on her face. "You… you knew?" she asked.

"That you're pregnant? Annie, you had all the signs. You're tired, moody, nauseated frequently, the heartburn from anything and everything, even water! Your back's been hurting. You're running off to the bathroom all the time. You ate cold leftover _chili_ for _breakfast_ the other day!" He said it all with a smile, which put Jo at ease a little. "How long have you known?" he asked her.

"Well, I'm just over three weeks late." She said. "Doc thinks I'm about six weeks."

"How do you feel about it?" he asked cautiously.

"Honestly, I'm nervous. I didn't know how _you'd_ feel about it."

"Annie, did you think I wouldn't be happy?" he asked, surprised.

"I… I didn't know. I know you've passed up the promotion to engineer a few times now. You love being a paramedic. I was afraid…"

Roy cut her off. "Don't you worry about the finances," he said. "I'll figure it out. We're not in bad shape. We'll just have to make some adjustments, that's all."

"Then… you _are_ happy about this?" she asked.

"Annie, Sweetheart… I'm thrilled! I'm gonna be a daddy again. We're going to be parents again!" Roy answered enthusiastically.

"Are _you _happy?" He asked her.

"Yes! I love being pregnant!"

"Even as lousy as you've been feeling?" Roy questioned, surprised.

"Even with that, but it should get better after the first trimester. I've never felt this awful before when I've been pregnant, but I have friends who have and they all say that after the first trimester, I will probably be fine."

"They're probably right. I'm glad you're happy too." Roy said. Then his stomach growled. "Are you interested in a lunch date?"

"That depends." She answered.

"Depends on what?"

"Is he cute?"

"I don't know about cute but definitely strong and good looking. He's a fireman and ladies love firemen. You'd be lucky to be seen with him." Roy smiled as he said it with a little glint in his eye.

"Ooh, a fireman! Firemen are hot! Where's he taking me?"

"Anywhere he can!" Roy answered.

"Roy, I meant where is he taking me to have lunch!"

"You have a one track mind," he said, pretending to be disappointed.

"So do you, Mr. Fireman!"

Roy kissed his wife and then started the car. "How 'bout that little Chinese place on 4th? Could you go for that?"

"I could." She said.

Emily Stanley was reading Katie a story when the doorbell rang. "Oh, sounds like your Mommy and Daddy might be here." She said to the young girl. Katie jumped off of Mrs. Stanley's lap and ran to the door ahead of her. "Wait, Katie. We always check who it is before we open the door."

"But I'm too little. I can't see in the peek hole," complained Katie.

Emily chuckled. "I'll look and then you can open the door." She peeked through the peephole and saw Roy and Joanne standing on her front porch. "Yep, it's them." She stepped back from the door and Katie unlocked it and opened it.

"Daddy! Mommy! Where were you?" she asked.

"Daddy took me to lunch. We had a date." Joanne answered her daughter as she hugged her. When their hug was complete Katie went to her Daddy. Roy bent down and picked her up and she threw her arms around his neck.

"How's my princess?" He asked her.

"Good. Daddy, why didn't you take _me_ to lunch?"

"Because Princess, sometimes mommies and daddies need some time just for them; just like sometimes you and I go do things without Mommy or Chris."

"Katie, Honey," Joanne redirected. "Did you clean up any mess you made?"

"She didn't make a mess Jo. We were just reading stories together." Emily said. "Won't you two come in and have a cup of coffee or something?"

"That sounds great, Emily," said Roy. "But we have to get home before Chris' bus gets there."

"Oh, of course."

"Thank you so much for picking Katie up from school and watching her for us. What do I owe you?"

"Oh, Roy, you know better than that. It was my pleasure. Hank's been working in the garage all day and Katie kept me company while she was here."

"Well, thank you. We appreciate it."

"Don't mention it. Take care." Emily said.

"You too. If we can return the favor some time, let us know."

"Don't worry, I will. See you later. Bye Katie!" She leaned over towards Roy and kissed Katie on the cheek.

"Bye Mrs. Stanley."

The next morning Roy was whistling happily as he changed into his uniform. He was thinking about how much fun it was going to be having a new baby in the house. He was excited about telling his friends. Sam was the next one to arrive and enter the locker room. Roy heard the swish of the curtain as she pulled it closed.

"Good morning, Sam," Roy stopped whistling to greet his sister.

"Mornin' Roy. You sound awfully happy today." She said.

"I'm in a good mood. How were your days off?"

"They were good. How were yours?"

"Oh fine. They were just fine."

"Hey guys, how's it going?" Mike joined in. He looked Sam's direction and was pleased to see the curtain doing its job. _No more embarrassing locker room encounters_, he thought to himself.

Before long Johnny joined them. Roy finished dressing and headed to the day room for a cup of coffee. When he entered he saw Captain Stanley pouring a cup for himself. "Hey, good morning Roy. How's Jo feeling this morning?"

"Oh, has your wife been sick?" asked JJ Merker.

Roy looked at his C shift counterpart. "Nothing serious." Then he looked towards his captain and answered his question. "She was up and fixed breakfast this morning, so she can't be feeling too badly." He answered.

"Must be nice. Having a wife I mean. Nobody fixes me breakfast before I go to work." JJ's partner, Dave said.

"Well, it certainly seems to suit Roy well!" Johnny said as he walked in and poured himself a cup of coffee.

"Personally, I like being single." The C-shift engineer said. "I come and go as I please, no wife to complain when I'm working overtime. Chicks around me whenever I go out. I love being single."

"Linker, that's only cause you don't know any better." Johnny said to him. This caused all the men to look his direction.

"Gage, you have a different woman every week!" said JJ.

"I do not!" Johnny said, indignantly.

"Well, how would you know any better to know that I don't? Mike Linker shot back. "You're not married either."

"Yeah? Well I spend a lot of time at the DeSoto's place. I see what it's like for Roy. He's a lucky man."

"Fellas, I hate to break up what promises to be the next great fire house debate, but roll call is in five minutes. I'll be in my office until then." Cap refilled his coffee cup and walked away.

Sam walked in and poured herself a half a cup of coffee. ""What did I just walk into?" she asked eying the men from both shifts.

"You wouldn't understand, Boot." Said Dave. He got up, washed his cup out and headed to the apparatus bay. Merker shook his head and sighed. Dave could be pain in the butt sometimes.

"Sorry, Anderson. Dave didn't mean anything by it." He said. JJ didn't understand why some of the guys were making such a big deal about women in the department. Sam proved she had a set as big as anyone's. She was doing the job just fine.

"Yes he did." Sam said. "But it's not your fault he's insecure." She gulped down the too hot coffee and rinsed her cup out before walking out to the bay.

Roll call came and went, announcements were made and chores assigned and the A-shift crew got to work. JJ and Dave were stepping over to the engine and pulling a double shift to cover for Marco and Chet who were on susppension. Sam had just finished calibrating the EKG when the klaxons sounded.

**Squad 51, man having difficulty breathing, 2315 West Benson, cross street 23rd. 2-3-1-5 West Benson. An ambulance has been dispatched. Time out 8:57. **

Sam quickly closed up the bio-phone and loaded it in the truck while Johnny grabbed the monitor and put it away. Roy wrote down the call information and the three of them jumped into the squad and took off adjusting their helmets as turned off the apron.

When they arrived at the scene the ambulance was not yet there. A 50-ish looking man was out on the curb waving them down. The paramedics piled out of the squad and went to the compartments to pull out their gear. The man was in the way so Sam gently took his arm and guided him a few steps away. "What seems to be the trouble?" she asked.

"It's my dad. He's been really sick. He's… he's… dying." The man looked down at his shoes when he said it. Obviously he wasn't ready to come to terms with it.

"Where is he?" Sam asked. Roy and Johnny had the equipment they needed and were ready to assess their patient.

"I'll show you, this way." The man turned and headed into the house. The paramedics followed closely behind. Sam took the oxygen from Johnny on the way in, lightening his load just a bit. They entered a house that was immaculate. Not one thing was out of place. The home smelled of pine cleaner as though it had recently been disinfected. The man led the rescuers to the living room where his dad was lying in a rented hospital bed. He was taking short choppy breaths and looked as though every breath took great effort. Roy walked over to him, and as he took his stethoscope out he said to the man,

"Hello. We're from the LA County Fire Department. We're paramedics. Looks like you're having some trouble breathing. Do you mind if we take a look at you?"

The man nodded, barely. He was struggling so hard to get air that he was using all his accessory muscles in the process. Sam got the oxgen started while Roy took the man's blood pressure. She gently slipped the oxygen mask over the man's face. "Sir, we're gonna give you some oxygen and it will help you breathe a little better." She said as she did it.

Johnny was setting up the bio-phone. "Rampart, Squad 51, do you read?"

"We read you 51," came Dixie's calm voice. "Go ahead."

"Rampart, we have a male, approximately 75 years old. He's complaining of difficulty breathing. Hold for vital signs." He looked at Roy waiting for the information to relay.

"Vitals are BP is 180 over 110," Roy announced. Respirations are labored and shallow; about 28. Pulse is 82."

Johnny relayed the information to Rampart.

"Have you started O2, 51?" asked Dixie.

"Affirmative Rampart."

"Okay, 51, stand by."

"10-4 Rampart, Standing by."

Sam started taking the medical history from the son asking about allergies, medications being taken and what kinds of health problems he was known to have. When she had written down the information she turned to Johnny and said quietly, "The man's been given two weeks. He came home to die. He's had recent surgery for cancer and he has a history of high blood pressure. The son says that 180 over 110 is not uncommon for him and that he's been on medication for that for a very long time."Johnny relayed the information to Rampart.

Roy looked at his patient with compassion. "Sir, I'm going to go talk to your son for a minute but my partner, Sam here will be right here with you. Okay?"

Sam patted the man's hand reassuringly and he nodded. "Are you feeling any better with the oxygen?" she asked him. He nodded again.

Roy looked at Johnny then at the son. "Sir, what we do is kind of up to you guys. His blood pressure is high, but you showed us your notes that it's been high and this isn't unusual for your dad. His oxygen level is good. I think most of his difficulties are anxiety related."

The man interrupted Roy. "They are! We've been telling him all day, breathe through your nose, take slow deep breaths, but he won't. He gets anxious and worked up and then he can't breathe."

"Roy," Johnny interjected. "Rampart has requested we transport."

Roy looked back at the son. "How bout it?"

The man hemmed and hawed. "I really don't want to move dad. He's not going to get better. He came home to… die peacefully. And an ambulance costs so much. I just think if I could give him oxygen when he got anxious he'd be fine here at home."

"Well the doc is recommending he come in. They can check him out and make sure that they're making him as comfortable as possible." Roy encouraged the son.

"I don't know."

Roy waited a minute but the man said nothing more. He turned back to his patient. "Sir, your son and I were just discussing what we thought would be best. He doesn't want to upset you or make you more uncomfortable, but the doc we've been talking to at the hospital thinks it would be a good idea if we brought you in and let them check you out. What do you want to do? Do you want to stay here or go to the hospital?"

The man shook his head. "Are you saying you want to go to the hospital?" Roy asked. The man shook his head again. Roy turned to the son. "He wants to go. We're going take him."

The son gave in. "Whatever you think best."

Johnny reported back to Rampart. "We're bringing him in, Rampart."

"10-4 51." Kel Brackett's voice came back. "Is the ambulance there yet?"

"Affirmative Rampart. They just pulled in."

Dr. Brackett gave orders to start an IV just in case they needed to administer meds quickly and to transport and to continue monitoring vitals. Johnny acknowledged and Sam started the IV while Roy and Johnny started packing up equipment. Johnny directed the ambulance attendants to the patient and he was packaged to go to the hospital.

"Can I ride in with you guys?" the son asked as they were loading his father into the ambulance.

"Of course, but you'll have to ride in front." Johnny said. Sammy and Johnny rode with the patient and Roy followed in the squad. Once the patient was delivered, they headed back to the barn. On the way, the three paramedics were talking. Sam noticed both men were in very good moods and commented.

"You guys are really chipper today. What's got you both so happy?"

Both men answered at the same time, taking advantage of the perfect moment to share their news. In unison they both said, "I'm gonna be a daddy!" Roy looked around Sam to look at Johnny while Johnny looked around her to look at Roy. Their eyes met briefly before Roy turned his eyes back to the road. Sam looked back and forth between the two of them.

***Thanks for waiting patiently for this chapter. During my visit to my brother's fire station I got to work at a controlled burn doing rehab for the firefighters and filling their air bottles and I got to help bring the gurney in for a patient and carry equipment out at a medical call I rode along on. I also got to play with a fire hose! It was lots of fun… and WORK!! I hope you like this chapter. Please leave me a few words in review. I always appreciate your comments! -Hotflash**


	25. Chapter 25

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 25**

The three paramedics were all sort of stunned after the announcement Roy and Johnny had made at the same time while heading back to the barn.

After a short awkward pause in the conversation Sam spoke to Johnny first.

"A daddy? You're gonna be a daddy? When?"

"I don't know exactly. We haven't set a date yet."

Roy rolled his eyes. "You set dates for weddings, not births. That's kind of out of your hands, Junior."

"I didn't say there was gonna be a birth, I said I'm gonna be a daddy." Johnny said, annoyed. Wasn't Roy listening to him?

"What are you talking about?" Sam asked, sharing Roy's confusion.

"Well, see, I asked Sharon to marry me yesterday." Johnny announced.

"Johnny, that's great! She said yes?" Sam was excited for him.

"She did!" he answered with a great big smile and an unmanly giggle.

"Johnny that means you'll be a husband soon, not a daddy." Roy informed him.

It was Johnny's turn to roll his eyes. "I know that! But she has a little girl."

"Sharon has a daughter? How long have you known?" Roy asked, surprised.

"Two days. She lives with Sharon's aunt while Sharon is getting her nursing education. She's 18 months old."

"What about the baby's father?" asked Sam.

"He's no good. He doesn't know about her and he's not on the birth certificate. I want to adopt her."

"Congratulations, Partner." Said Roy, smiling broadly. "Sharon's a real nice girl. I'm sure you'll be great parents."

"Thanks Pally." Johnny said. "Now what's this? You're gonna be a daddy again too?"

Roy grinned. "Yep, Joanne's pregnant. _That's_ why she's been so tired and sick lately."

"I'm gonna be an aunt again? You're having a baby?" Sam said excitedly.

"Well, Joanne is, I'm kind of a spectator mostly." Roy corrected her. Sam smacked him on the leg.

"You _know_ what I mean!"

"Roy, that's great! Is she excited about it?" asked Johnny. He was excited for his friends.

"Yeah, she's pretty happy about it. She was worried that I wouldn't be happy, but I am. I kinda miss having the little ones around."

"Yeah, kids are great!" agreed Johnny.

As Roy backed the squad into the bay Sam asked, "So is this a secret or are you telling the guys?"

"It's no secret really," said Roy.

Sam looked at Johnny. "And your news?"

"I'll _tell_ them. It's no secret." Johnny answered.

Sam put her arm around Johnny and gave him a squeeze. "I'm very happy for you." She took her arm back and when Roy shut the engine off she did the same to her brother.

Johnny called to report they were in quarters and the three paramedics piled out of the squad and headed to the day room for a cup of coffee.

They sat at the table where the rest of the guys were sitting around chatting. "Cap said he wanted to have a meeting before lunch, assuming we aren't toned out."

"Did he say what about?" asked Sam.

"No." Mike said. "He just said it was important we all meet and discuss something."

"Gentlemen… er… Sam… that includes you. I've just stood us down for the next half hour. If everybody is ready, I have something I need to discuss with you."

"What is it Cap?" asked Roy.

"Well Roy, we are going to be hosting a television reporter and camera crew starting sometime around lunch and continuing for the next several shifts."

"Cap, we've had camera crews here before. Why the big deal?" asked Johnny.

"Because they are coming to see how Sam is fitting in and to watch her work. I'm sure you know there have been a lot of discussions on television and in letters to the editor about women in the department. It's very important that we represent the department with professionalism." He looked Dave straight in the eye as he said it.

"Well why are you looking at me Cap?" Dave acted like his captain's concern was unfounded.

"Dave, I'm well aware of your tendency to go a bit, shall we say, overboard sometimes. I want to make it perfectly clear that there will not be any tolerance for monkey business. We want to show that we are mature professionals."

Dave lowered his eyes and gave a slight nod. _I can't believe they are making such a big deal out of this chick_, he thought.

"Now, they want to see Sam going through regular routines, like the inventory of the squad, calibrating the EKG, station chores, and of course they will be watching you Sam as you respond to calls. They will also be watching the interaction between all of us here at the station and how we respond to working with Sam. They may also interview you guys separately to see how you individually feel about working together. I don't have to remind you to use caution with what you say and how you say it. "

"Cap, the guys and I get along great. Are you really that worried about it?" Sam asked.

"Sam, it doesn't matter what I'm concerned with. Word has come down that this better go well for the department or there will be serious consequences. Does everyone understand that?"

Yes sir," each man answered.

"Good, any questions?"

"Uh, Cap, I have one."

"Sam?" he acknowledged her.

"Are they going to be hanging with other shifts or stations as well? I mean, you guys have been great but I know not all the guys everywhere are as accepting as you have been. I hear comments at calls and I know I'm not being that well received by a lot of the guys and especially by the wives and girlfriends."

"Yes, Sam, I'm afraid so. They will be here for at least one shift with B and C shifts and they will probably visit some other stations. Each captain is supposed to be briefing his crew."

"Okay then. I guess we just hope for the best." Sam said. She wasn't feeling very happy about having her every move watched and scrutinized. She realized it came with the territory. She was a pioneer and as such, everybody wanted to know what she was doing.

"Any other questions?" Hank asked. He got slight head shakes and no questions were asked so he dismissed his crew, but nobody left the table.

"Looks like we've got a celebrity in the house," JJ said, winking Sam's direction.

Dave let out a snort.

Sam changed the subject. "So, Roy and Johnny both have some interesting news. Don't you Roy? Everyone looked at Roy, expectantly.

"Oh, well, it's not that big of a deal." He said.

"What is it, Pal?" asked Cap.

"Yeah, out with it already," Mike added.

"Well," Roy started with a smile. "Jo and I are going to be parents again, that's all."

Roy's friends were happy for him and congratulated him. They teased him a little asking him if he knew what was causing that, and the usual sort of joshing around. As the conversation wound down a little Mike addressed Johnny.

"John, Sam said you had news too."

Johnny turned a little red. Then his smile took over his face and he announced, "I'm gonna have a kid too… sort of."

"Sort of, Pal?" Cap questioned.

"Yeah, isn't that really an all or none kind of deal?" asked Mike.

"Well yeah. I asked Sharon to marry me and she has an 18 month old daughter."

"A ready made family," said Mike. "That's jumping in with both feet!"

Sam's curiosity was getting the best of her. "Hey, Johnny, how did you propose to her?"

Johnny had their undivided attention as he shared his story with the guys. He was just finishing his story when there was a knock on the station door.

"That's very romantic, Johnny. Nice job." Sam said.

"There's a sucker born every minute." Mumbled Dave. JJ kicked him under the table.

"Sam, you wanna get the door?" Cap directed.

"Sure Cap." Sam went to the door and opened it. On the other side of the door there was a very handsome male reporter flanked by a cameraman and an assistant.

"Hi," said Sam." I'm firefighter/paramedic Anderson. Please, come in." She stepped aside and held the door for the T.V. crew.

"You're Anderson? Wowee!" Said the reporter and then followed it by a whistle. Mike, who had followed Sam out to the door glared at the young reporter.

Sam rolled her eyes, reflexively. Then she hoped they hadn't noticed. "And your name is…?" She waited while the dumbstruck reporter thought of an answer.

"Derek Strong, ABC News," He said, once he had gained his composure. "Nice to meet you." He held out his hand.

"The pleasure is mine." She said, shaking his hand. "Why don't you follow me and I'll show you the day room where I can offer you a cup of coffee." She stepped that direction and led the way.

She brought them into the day room and introduced them. "Everybody, this is Derek Strong of ABC News and this is his crew…" She paused, expecting them to volunteer their names. They didn't. She turned to the news crew and said, "Let me introduce you to my co-workers." She introduced Captain Stanley and Mike first, then JJ and Dave, and finished with Johnny and Roy. Hank invited the crew to sit down while Roy and Johnny volunteered their seats and offered coffee to their guests. For the next half hour everyone discussed what the crew's plan was and what Captain Stanley expected of the crew. He passed out consent forms for the crew to sign and he made it very clear that they were not to get in the way of any work and that they must follow orders of the Captain or anyone higher up and that they must also take direction from firefighters at any scene. They would be provided with turn out coats and helmets to wear on scene and they would be issued a radio but would not be riding in department vehicles. As such they were required to obey all traffic laws.

Once all the particulars were discussed, Sam offered to take the crew on a tour of the station. As they headed out of the day room Derek said to Sam, "So… how does a gorgeous young woman such as your self come to choose something as rough and dangerous as fire fighting as a career?" Mike, still in earshot, reddened slightly. He did not like this reporter already and went straight to Cap's office to tell him so.

"Let's get one thing straight." Said Sam, firmly. "I doubt very seriously that if what some might deem a very handsome young _male_ firefighter was being interviewed, that his appearance or perceived level of attractiveness would be brought up in relation to his job. One has nothing to do with the other. I would _appreciate_ the same courtesy!"

"Ooh, feisty too. I _like_ that!" responded Derek.

"Show a little respect. We are all professionals here." Roy said it with his usual quietly calm demeanor. What Sam didn't see was the look Roy leveled at Derek was full of daggers when he made eye contact with him.

Derek turned quickly back to Sam with an _almost_ imperceptible shudder as Roy and Johnny exchanged glances. "Tell me Ms. Anderson, if you would, why did you decide to become a fire fighter?"

"I am the proud daughter and sister of two of the finest firefighters I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. I saw the satisfaction they found in doing their jobs and how proud they were to be privileged to serve their community and I wanted a part of it for myself. I cannot imagine a career more rewarding than this one."

Derek stared at her as she answered. Suddenly he realized she wasn't talking any more. He faked a sneeze to cover for his attention loss. "So, your Dad and your brother are firefighters? For what departments?"

Sam glanced Roy's direction. Roy was standing behind Derek and he shrugged back at Sam. He hoped she wouldn't reveal that information but he couldn't really help her out too much. "Didn't your dad work for Sacramento?" Roy asked her.

"Um, yeah. At one time he did. Dad's no longer fighting fires. He was killed in the line of duty when I was a kid. Warehouse collapse." Sam answered, thankful for the assist.

Derek was not deterred. He didn't even acknowledge Sam's sad memory. He just dug in more directly. "What department does your brother work for?"

"She could tell you, but she'd have to kill you." Mike saved her. Derek's crew chuckled loudly. Derek rolled his eyes in frustration.

"Seriously…" he started to say.

The klaxons welcome interruption blared over the loudspeaker, followed by the steady voice of LA County dispatcher Sam Lanier.

**Station 51, Motor vehicle accident, unknown injuries…**

Derek didn't hear the rest of the information. He was too busy trying to get his cameraman to follow Sam as she dashed for the squad. From where he was standing at the time, the diesel engine of Big Red drowned out anything else that was said. Luckily for him Captain Stanley had written three copies of the call slip and handed him one on the way to the truck.

"Remember to follow all traffic laws and stay out of the way!" he commanded as he thrust the slip at Derek. As soon as the squad turned off the apron, the news crew jumped into their personal vehicle and chased after them.

When the squad pulled up to the scene with Big Red close behind them, the paramedics could see this was going to be a bad one. The accident involved multiple vehicles and was blocking the two inside lanes of the freeway. The CHP had only arrived just minutes before them and an officer was trying to set up flares to redirect traffic. Two more officers on motorcycles arrived just behind Big Red.

Roy, Johnny and Sam jumped out and started grabbing equipment while Mike got the engine ready to pump. Cap directed Dave Martin to take an inch and a half to wash down fuel spills and sent JJ Merker to help the other paramedics. Hank started pulling battery cables on the wrecked cars and asked a CHP officer to help. On his way to the first car he called dispatch to request another squad and engine and multiple ambulances.

The four paramedics split up. In all seven vehicles were involved and from the looks of things, all were totaled. Roy ran to the VW bug that was the vehicle farthest away. He could see smoke coming from under the hood. Cap had gone to it first to pull the battery cables but it was already smoking before he got there. Roy looked inside. A woman was in the driver's seat slumped over the wheel, obviously pinned. He could see her neck was at a crazy angle and knew right away she had been killed on impact. Still he reached in to check for a pulse. Finding none he notified his captain and moved to the next vehicle while Hank some how managed to remove the body to keep it from being consumed by flames.

Sam was at the driver's side of the second vehicle applying pressure to a punctured jugular on the driver. "Roy!" she shouted. "There's a child trapped in the back. She's half under the passenger seat and she's not moving."

"Amy…" moaned Sam's patient.

"Ssshh." Soothed Sam. "Don't try to talk. My partner's gonna check on Amy. We'll get you both out. We're going to take good care of you."

Captain Stanley directed Dave to the VW and after he and the CHP officer had pulled all the battery cables from the remaining vehicles, he checked with Sam to see if he could assist her.

"Yeah, Cap. You can. Take over for me, please. Keep pressure on this while I check his vitals." She quickly checked his BP, pulse and respirations. She wrote them down on a notepad. "I've got to start an IV. I'll be right back." She ran to the bio-phone, which had been left near the squad where all the paramedics would know to find it. She called in to Rampart and reported on her patient and when she had received treatment orders she quickly found Johnny who had the drug box. She took what she needed and ran back to treat her patient. She saw the other squad and engine arrive as she ran back.

Dave was busily trying to smother the flames that had erupted full out in the VW. The hose was tightly stretched and he needed a little more slack. He shut the nozzle off and gave the hose a great tug. Just at that moment the fuel tank on the VW exploded throwing him off balance. He was knocked backwards and flipped over the center divider, landing in the oncoming inside lane and continued to roll. Traffic had been diverted to the two outside lanes but Dave's body rolled into the next lane where an impatient driver had tried to bypass the traffic back up. The pick up truck ran right over the top of Dave before coming to a screeching halt. A CHP officer went running over to the incident as the driver of the pick up got out and ran over to the fallen firefighter. The driver, being nearer, reached Dave first and seeing him not moving, panicked. He reached down and grabbed Dave by his coat, shaking him violently.

"Wake up! Wake up!" he was yelling. "Oh my God! I couldn't stop!"

*** I surprised myself and got this update out fairly quickly. This next week, Thursday until Thanksgiving is going to be hectic and I don't know if I'll get much time to write, but I will try. Please take a moment to leave me a review. They are very important to me and help me through roadblocks. Fanfiction readers are the best! Thanks for catching my errors and pointing them out and for the encouragement in your reviews. -Hotflash**


	26. Chapter 26

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 26**

Unconscious Firefighter/Paramedic Dave Martin was being violently shaken by the driver of the truck that ran over him.

The CHP officer was yelling at the man to stop as he ran to the aid of the injured rescuer. "Step away from the firefighter!" he commanded. The man did not stop and, fearing that he was causing further injury to the unconscious firefighter, the officer forcefully grabbed the man and pulled him off of him.

Sam had watched the scene unfold with horror stricken eyes as she finished stabilizing her patient. There was nothing more she could do for the man at the present time so she left her captain with him until he could be extricated from the mangled vehicle and practically flew over the highway divider to get to Dave. A paramedic from the other squad was close behind her, with a trauma kit. The trauma inflicted on Dave had put him into a full arrest. Sam immediately began CPR while Ed James, the other paramedic, pulled out his HT and relayed the situation to his captain who was now manning a bio-phone. One of the linemen from the second engine dispatched came running over with an EKG monitor that Ed's partner had sent him with. Working around Sam as she administered CPR, he patched Dave into the monitor and prepared to run a strip. He sent the lineman to bring back the bio-phone so they could transmit the strip to Rampart.

While Sam and Ed worked feverishly to save Dave's life everything else became a blur around them. By the time Dave was packaged and ready to transport, Sam was becoming exhausted but she refused to let anyone take over CPR for her. Dave wasn't going to die. Not on her watch. For all they had done for him, Ed knew the likelihood of Dave coming out of this was slim to none. Ed was a seasoned Paramedic and he had seen too many victims in far better shape than Dave that just never regained consciousness. He could see Sam didn't have much more to give.

With the camera crew watching everything Sam was doing, Ed wasn't about to interfere with Sam's efforts but he knew she couldn't keep going. Once the doors to the ambulance had closed and they were on their way, Ed touched her shoulder. "Anderson, let me take over." He said firmly. Sam continued compressions and Ed was bagging Dave to get the air in him.

Sam knew in her heart that if she stopped, Dave would never wake up. It was all up to her. She continued even though she was numb from exhaustion and she was finding it harder to focus. Counting compressions was getting harder and harder.

"Sam! Let me take over! You're exhausted. Trade me places right now,that's an order!" Ed demanded. She was still a trainee and he pulled rank to make her stop.

"I'm fine!" she insisted and didn't stop. This continued, him talking and her refusing to give up while the two of them worked on their fallen brother all the way to Rampart. When they arrived Sam stopped long enough to get Dave unloaded. Ed tried to take over once the gurney was free of the ambulance, but Sam pushed past him to ride the rails of the gurney and continue. Ed didn't fight her. She couldn't last much longer but in just a moment, the ER staff would relieve her and she would have no choice. He knew this could be her first loss of a patient if Dave didn't make it. And being a fellow firefighter would make it that much harder for her. He was filled with compassion for her even though he himself was distraught that the patient they were losing was one of the brotherhood.

In the treatment room Dr. Mike Morton told Sam to stop and let the ER staff take over. Sam couldn't bring herself to stop. "That's ENOUGH! You are dismissed!" he said to her as he started to physically pull her off.

With a surge of adrenaline, Sam started to fight him off. Ed saw it coming and intervened, jumping between the doctor and Sam and forcefully pulling her off of the rails of the gurney. The process caused her to fall and as soon as she hit the floor he slid her out of the way by giving a sharp yank on her arm so the hospital staff could get to the patient.

Exhausted and defeated, Sam stopped fighting. Feeling her give up the fight, Ed helped her up. Not knowing what else to do, he pulled her to the side of the room and wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight. "You did all you could, Anderson."

Sam was completely spent. The tears started falling and the sobs she tried in vain to choke back stubbornly forced their way out. Ed just held on to her. Silently he let his own tears fall as he shared her pain and frustration. The two remained in the corner of the room, out of the way until Dixie came over to them. She could see in Ed's face the helplessness he felt as he tried to console Sam. She reached out and took Sam from Ed's arms.

"Come on Sam. Let's find you a place to rest and get yourself together," she said. Then, looking at Ed she added, "Your partner is waiting for you in the lounge. It's quiet and the coffee is hot."

"Thanks Dix," Ed nodded in appreciation. He turned and stepped out.

After a few moments more of consoling Sam, Dixie put her arm around Sam's shoulder and led her out of the room. When they stepped out of the room into the hall they were assaulted by the harsh light from the camera crew as Derek Strong was filming Sam's reaction to the call she had just dealt with. Protectively Dixie stood in front of Sam.

Very sternly Dixie looked at the crew. "Have some decency. Scram!" She scooted Sam down the hall and straight into Doctor Brackett's office. "You can stay in here as long as you need to," she said. "I'll let Roy and Johnny know where you are."

"Thanks," said Sam weakly. She curled herself up on the couch and closed her eyes. About ten minutes later Roy came in to check on her.

"Sam?

"Go away," she said without opening her eyes.

"Sam," he tried again, squatting down at the couch. "I know you're angry and hurting. And I know you're blaming yourself." Roy paused to see if she'd respond at all. She didn't. He put his hand on her arm. "You did all you could. It was out of your hands. You did your best but nothing could have saved him."

Sam opened her eyes wide. "How do you _know_ that?" She demanded.

"Sam, you did everything you are trained to do. He had blast injuries and trauma from being hit by the truck. He didn't suffer, Sam. He was gone when you got to him."

"Sam knew he was right but she was a sore loser. She sat up and leaned forward with her elbows on her knees, burying her head in her hands. Roy sat beside her and put his arm around her shoulders.

"I'm so sorry Sam," he said softly. "I know it hurts to lose. That part never gets easier." Sam leaned into Roy and the two sat together not saying a word. After a few minutes Sam let out a deep sigh.

"Thanks, Bro," she said to Roy. "Is JJ okay?"

"He was in with Dave when I came looking for you. It's going be tough on him. It's rough on all of us."

"I should go to him," she said. "I want to tell him I'm sorry. I did all I could do."

"He knows that Sam. He doesn't blame you. No one does."

"I need to do this Roy."

"I understand. Strong's waiting for you in the hall," he warned her.

"Jerk!" Sam hissed.

"You want me to get rid of him?" Roy asked protectively.

"No. He's doing his job. He's a creep but this isn't his fault." She turned to her brother and hugged him. "Thanks."

"Any time, Sammy." He hugged her back then walked over to the door. "Ready?"

Sam nodded. Roy held the door for her and the two stepped out to face the rest of their shift.

"Sam," Derek called shoving a microphone her direction. "How are you feeling right now?"

_Is this guy really THAT insensitive or completely clueless? _ Sam wondered. "Hmmmm" she said. "Let's see. I just lost my first patient and, oh yeah, he happened to be one of our own. Right now I feel…groovy! Just groovy. How the _hell_ do you _think_ I feel?"

"Get that damned camera and microphone out of her face!" growled Mike. He took Sam's hand and maneuvered her so that he was between her and the news crew. "You guys are unbelievable!"

Mike let Sam lead the way and followed her like a personal bodyguard. When they reached the treatment room that Dave and JJ were in he asked her, "Do you want me to go in with you or wait out here?"

"I… I need to do this… alone." Sam looked down as she said it and gave Mike's hand a squeeze. "Thank you for that back there."

Mike nodded at her. When she released his hand he held the door for her then stood guard and waited for her to come back out.

Sam entered the room silently. JJ was sitting in a chair at Dave's bedside. His back was to the door so he didn't know who had entered, but he really didn't care. His partner was dead. Dave had been a paramedic only six months. He had done his field training with JJ and then been assigned with him when JJ's partner was injured in the line of duty and had to take disability. Dave was rough around the edges but a good paramedic and once he got to know someone, a good friend. When JJ had to take leave not due him for a family emergency, Dave worked shifts for other guys so that they would cover for JJ and then refused to accept any compensation. He was hard working, loyal, and dedicated. He would be sorely missed.

Slowly Sam approached JJ and when she was close enough to him she reached out and put a hand gently on his shoulder. She felt him stiffen up at first but when she said his name, he relaxed.

"JJ, I am so sorry."

JJ turned his head and looked over his shoulder at her. Then he slowly stood up and they faced each other. Sam looked into JJ's green eyes and saw the sadness he felt reflected back at her. Sam took one of his hands in one of hers. She felt like she needed to physically connect with him to say what she needed to say.

"I can't believe he's gone. We were just… talking with him. I'm so sorry JJ. I did everything I could. I just… I tried so hard… I just couldn't save him. I'm so sorry."

"Stop apologizing, Sam. It wasn't your fault. When your time's up, your time is up."

Sam didn't say anything. She kept eye contact with him a moment longer then looked down at the floor. JJ knew that in her own way, for her own reasons, she was taking this just as hard as he was. He knew she needed something from him too. He just didn't have the wherewithal to give much right now. JJ raised his hand from his side and held it out to her. Sam took his hand and JJ shook hers.

"Thanks for everything you did. I know you tried to save him. It was just too late. But Sam, you can't own this as your failure. You have to keep on going. If you don't, then this job will swallow you whole. But you can make a difference. Don't let that get away from you."

"Thanks JJ. If there's anything I can do…" She didn't have to finish the sentence. He nodded at her then put his arm around her shoulders and the two of them headed for the door.

Just before he left the room JJ turned towards Dave's lifeless body and said, "Thanks, man. You were a good fireman and a great friend. It was a privilege to know you. See you again, someday." Then he turned back to the door, walked through and let it close behind him.

***Surprise, I managed to find time to get out another one. Sorry it was a tough chapter. But that's just how it is in the world of firefighters and paramedics. Some days are good, some days are great and others, not so much. Please leave me a review. It keeps me going and encourages me to find the time to write more. Thanks. -Hotflash**


	27. Chapter 27

Everything Changes

**Chapter 27**

When Sam walked out of Dave's room, Mike was right where she'd left him. He took her in his arms the second she left the room and held her. The rest of her shift mates were there and when she pulled away from Mike's supporting embrace, all of them took turns doing the same as he had, even Captain Stanley. To Sam's relief, Derek Strong and his henchmen were nowhere to be seen. The men offered their condolences to JJ as he walked out of the room. They gave him hugs too and although they didn't hold him as closely as they had Sam, they still gave him their full support, unabashed. When he had received the full round of embraces, Hank looked at him with compassion in his eyes.

"JJ, I called your wife. She's going to meet us at the station and take you home. Take all the time you need."

"Thank you, Sir." JJ choked out. Then 51's entire crew, less one, walked out to the trucks. Hank pulled Roy aside and had a short, quiet conversation with him before all of them headed solemnly back to the barn.

Johnny put his arm around Sam in the squad and she leaned her head on his shoulder. Sam never even noticed that Roy was not driving a direct route back to the station or that he was driving a little under the posted speed limit. If Johnny noticed, he had the sense enough not to bring attention to the fact.

As Roy drove the squad he stole occasional glances at Sam. She was clearly exhausted. She appeared to be asleep on Johnny's shoulder, but Roy knew it was a light sleep at best. Driving through the city streets Roy tried to actually time his drive to hit the red lights. His captain had asked him to delay the squad's arrival at the station and he was doing just that.

Captain Stanley was off the truck before Mike even backed her into the bay. He headed straight for his office and shut the door loudly behind him. After a few phone calls he stepped out. He went first to the locker room where JJ was sitting on a bench, head in his hands. Walking up behind the paramedic Hank put a hand on his shoulder. He didn't need to say anything; he just wanted JJ to know he was there for him.

JJ appreciated Hank's gesture but he just felt empty at the moment. He'd lost two partners in six months. While the first one wasn't dead, he'd never be a firefighter again. Now Dave was gone too, only he couldn't even be a friend anymore. JJ couldn't help but feel somehow that _he_ was a failure.

Mike poked his head into the locker room. "Cap?" Hank looked at his engineer. "Mrs. Merker is here." Hank nodded a thank you to Mike and gently took JJ by the elbow to encourage him to stand up. He walked JJ to his wife who took him in her arms and held him for a minute before leading him silently to their car. Hank watched them drive away then turned abruptly and made a beeline to the day room.

"Strong, my office. Now!" Strong looked up from his cup of coffee startled and wide eyed. His camera crew exchanged glances with him and he got up and walked quietly to the captain's office.

When Roy backed the squad into the bay ten minutes later Hank was still reading Derek the riot act and his angry voice, though muffled, could be heard through the door to the office. When the squad stopped and the bay door came down Sam didn't move. Johnny glanced over at Roy and raised an eyebrow at him silently asking what he should do. Roy put his hand on Sam's thigh and gave a gentle squeeze.

"Come on Sam," he said.

Sam opened her eyes and lifted her head off of Johnny's shoulder. Johnny gave her a quick one-armed hug then took his arm from around her shoulders. "Sam? Are you all right?" He asked though he knew she wasn't really. None of them were. He realized how dumb it was to ask and silently cursed himself for doing it.

"Right now I don't know _what_ I am, Johnny. I just don't know."

The three paramedics piled out of the squad. They all went in to wash up and then Roy talked Sam into a hot shower to help her relax. He and Johnny stepped out of the washroom and closed the door behind them. Roy went to Sam's locker and took out her duffel, brought it back to the washroom and knocked on the door. When Sam opened it he handed her the bag then he and Johnny left her. When they passed Cap's office on the way to get coffee, the door was still closed and the heated discussion inside continued.

"How's Sam?" asked Mike when they entered the day room.

"About as well as one might expect," answered Roy. "She's angry, frustrated, numb and exhausted. She's in the shower now."

"She should go home. She doesn't need to be here," Mike said, wishing he could go with her and take care of her.

Roy nodded. "I agree. Let's see what the Cap says."

Derek Strong's crew was sitting on the couch nervously trying to blend in like buttons in the upholstery. They wished they could be anywhere but here. Clearly they were unwanted. They were about to get their wish. Everyone looked towards the doorway when they heard the door to the captain's office open. Derek walked in purposefully and without saying a word he made eye contact with one of his crew members, stuck his thumb out and jerked it over his shoulder. He turned sharply on his heel and stormed out. The two-man crew quickly picked up their gear and followed. One of them had to squeeze past Hank near the doorway. "Sorry about everything," he said as he passed by. Hank gave him a curt nod and then they were gone.

"I hope that's the last we see of _them_," said Mike.

"You can count on it," promised Hank. "Where's Sam?"

"I'm here, Cap," she said walking through the doorway wearing a clean uniform with her wet hair sticking out every which way on her head and a towel hanging around her neck and a hairbrush in her hand. She walked slowly across the room as if on automatic-pilot mode and sat down on the couch. She started pulling her hairbrush through the tangled mess.

Mike walked over to the kitchen counter and got a cup out of the cupboard. He filled it with water and heated it in the microwave. When it was hot he made Sam a cup of chamomile tea. He was glad the station had some in the cupboard. It wasn't exactly a manly fireman's drink but when Johnny went through an occasional bout of insomnia he would try anything; even chamomile tea. When it was steeped Mike mixed in a little honey and brought it to her, setting it on the end table next to her. Sam acknowledged it with a small, quick attempt at a smile.

Boot, the station Mutt, had been curled up on the other end of the couch. Once Sam stopped brushing her hair and sat mostly still, he came over to her and plopped down beside her, his head resting on her thigh. Without even realizing it she put her arm over him and scratched behind his ear.

Mike and Roy made their way across the room to stand next to Hank. "Cap, I think you should send Sam home." Mike made the suggestion quietly.

"I agree," added Roy.

"I'm for that," said Hank. "But I don't want her driving and I don't think she should be alone."

"She boards with a little old lady who kind of mother's her." Mike informed Hank. Both Roy and Hank wondered how he would know that but neither of them asked him.

"I could take her. We're stood down while we're short a man until JJ's replacement arrives," Mike offered.

Hank looked at his watch. "Last I heard it would be another 45 minutes to an hour before he arrives. Do it."

"Okay." Mike walked back over to Sam. He sat beside her and turned his body to face her. "Sam, finish your tea. I'm taking you home." Sam looked at him but didn't argue. She picked up her tea and drank some. She was surprised it wasn't too hot, but Mike had made sure of that when he made it. She drank it down and stood up.

She looked at each of her "brothers" with gratitude. "Safe shift, guys. See you."

The guys all wished her well and Mike led her to her locker and carried her duffel to his truck. He helped her in and then drove her home. Neither of them talked during the drive. When he pulled in and shut off the engine he turned and looked at her. "Sam, you need to try and sleep. I'll come by right after work."

"Right," Sam said flatly.

Mike sighed and got out of the truck. He walked around to her side and opened her door then helped her out. He grabbed her bag and walked her to the door. When he tried the knob he was glad to find it locked. "You have the key?" he asked.

"I don't know."

Mike shrugged then rang the doorbell. It took a while for the door to be answered but he could hear the elderly woman moving around inside so he waited patiently. After what seemed like a long time a smallish voice asked, "Who is it?"

"Fire Department Ma'am." Mike decided that would be the easiest way to gain entry rather than try to explain through the door who he was. Sam wasn't saying anything.

"Just a minute."

Mike heard her moving around and soon he saw the curtain from a window near the door open a bit and a lady looked out towards the driveway. Then she looked towards the porch. Mike stepped away from Sam a bit so that she could see her there. She looked a bit surprised but he heard her hurry back to the door. The sounds of two locks were loud and then the door opened a crack, a chain lock still in place. The woman peeked out to see Sam's face. When she was sure it was Sam standing there she closed the door, removed the chain and then opened it back up.

"Sam, what on earth is going on?" She reached for the young woman and pulled her inside. Looking at Mike she gestured him to come in.

"Ma'am, My name is Mike Stoker. I work with Sam."

"I can see that, young man"

Mike smiled at her. "Uh, We've had a pretty rough shift and we… Our captain thought it best if Sam take some time off."

"Oh, I see," said the woman. "Mike, did you say?"

He nodded. "Yes Ma'am."

"Perhaps you could stay and help me get her settled?" She'd heard all about Mike already.

"I'd like that. But I can only stay a few minutes. I'm still on duty."

"Very well. I'm Millie, by the way. You can call me Miss Millie. Come this way." Miss Millie led the way. Mike put his arm around Sam's shoulders and led her through the house after Miss Millie. Sam's quarters were upstairs but Miss Millie led them to a guest room on the lower level. "I'll have her rest in here. I cannot get up and down the stairs like I used to. Would you mind helping me out a little?" She said to Mike.

He answered. "What do you want me to do?"

"Would you mind finding her something more comfortable to rest in and helping me make up the bed?"

"Of course." Mike answered. He looked at Sam. "What do you want to wear and where will I find it?"

"I my duffel I have a pair of gym shorts and a t-shirt." She wanted a long soft nightgown but she didn't want him to go upstairs and have to search through her dresser to get it.

"That's what you want?" he asked.

"She wants her green nightgown." Miss Millie said. "It's in her dresser. I don't know which drawer."

Sam turned a little red but when Mike looked her way she gave a slight nod. Miss Millie was right. That was what she wanted.

"I'll go get it," Mike said. He went upstairs to look for it. Looking around her small quarters he noted how tidy it was and how warm and inviting it felt. He breathed in a deep breath through his nose and couldn't help but smile as his nostrils filled with a warn spice scent that somehow seemed just perfectly her. He spotted the dresser and walked over to it. On top of the dresser were two pictures in frames. One of her and Roy, who was wearing an Army dress uniform, sitting on a porch swing holding what appeared to be glasses of lemonade; the other was of an older man that was probably their father, judging by the similar features and strikingly clear blue eyes. He was dressed in his class A Fire Department uniform. They were water-colored black and white photo's but good quality.

Mike stared at the photo's a moment then got down to the task at hand. He opened the top drawer first without really thinking about it. He actually blushed when he looked inside to see several pairs of panties in different colors and styles, mostly lacy. He closed the drawer and looked in the next drawer down. Bingo. There were practical nightgowns on one side of the drawer and negligees on the other. He looked in the stack of practical nightgowns and found what he was looking for, third down in the stack. He pulled out an emerald green silky feeling nightgown. He held it up and let it unfold. It had a scoop neck and short cap sleeves and looked like it would reach about mid calf judging by the length of it. The neckline was edged with soft, delicate looking lace. Mike folded it back up as best he could, closed the drawer and brought it down to her.

Miss Millie had gathered clean sheets and a blanket and a quilt and set them on top of the bed, which was covered only with a thin spread. "Thank you. Would you mind while we get her situated?" she asked pointing to the bed.

Mike smiled at her and watched her lead Sam out of the room to the bathroom to change. While she did he quickly made up her bed. He had barely finished when Sam came wandering into the room by herself.

"Where'd Miss Millie go?" he asked.

"To the kitchen to make tea."

Mike took Sam in his arms and held her close. "I love you, Sam. I'll help you through this."

Sam let his warmth surround her and hugged him around his waist. "I wish you didn't have to go now. I just want to stay in your arms."

"I know. I'm sorry, Honey. I'll be back as soon as the shift is over. I promise."

"Okay."

"Come on. Time to get in bed," he said, loosening his embrace. She hugged him tighter. "Sam, come on. I'll be back soon. Get in bed so I can get you settled. I really have to go."

Sam sighed and complied with his directions. When she was settled under the covers Mike bent down and kissed her on the forehead. "Try to sleep, Hon. I'll see you soon."

"'kay. Stay safe."

Mike smiled at her then turned reluctantly and stepped out of the room. He pulled the door almost closed and walked away. Mike looked around enough to find the kitchen and let Miss Millie know Sam was settled and he was going back to work. Miss Millie started to get up to walk him to the door. He was going to tell her he could let herself out but then he remembered the locks. They would have to be set from the inside.

"Thanks for looking out for her," said Mike. "I told her I would be back after the shift ends at 8:00 in the morning."

"Good. She really likes you, you know."

"That's good," Mike said. "Because I love her." They reached the door and Mike opened it to step out.

"I _know_ young man, I'm not blind, just near sighted." She smiled and patted Mike on the back. "Hurry back."

"I will," he said. "Thank you."

*Wow. I thought I wouldn't have time to write but I've been cranking out the chapters. I'm pretty sure I really will be slowing down again because the work-load is crazy right now. Thanks for under standing. Thanks for taking a minute to review for me. It is amazing to me how few people who read these stories actually do leave comments. If those who don't leave them only knew how much they mean to those of us on the receiving end, I wonder if more would leave them. Thanks again, those of you who do write them. You ROCK! Hotflash


	28. Chapter 28

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 28**

***When I originally posted this chapter I had asked for feedback regarding where and how the readers would like to see things progress in this story. I received many comments via posted reviews and many more comments via private messages. I was pleasantly surprised at the number of responses I received and the honesty, frankness and respect with which opinions were stated. Emergency! Fanfiction readers are the an amazingly mature and respectful group and I value and respect each and every opinion I received. Thank you for that. **

**That said, I have not changed anything about chapter 28. It remains the same short chapter as previously posted, with exception to the author's notes. Chapter 29 will be a short chapter that would have otherwise been the other half of 28. I hope you enjoy them both.**

By 8:15 the next morning Mike was knocking on the door to Sam's house. Miss Millie followed the same routine as the night before, taking her time getting to the door, checking out the window, opening the door with the chain still on and looking Mike in the face before granting him entry. Mike didn't mind. He was glad she was cautious.

"Come in, young man," said Miss Millie stepping out of the way. "Sam's upstairs getting dressed."

"Thank you," Mike said, stepping into the house and closing the door behind him. "How'd she do?"

"She cried a lot. And she slept a little. I got some hot cereal down her a while ago." Miss Millie answered him as she led them to the kitchen. "There's coffee. Would you like some?" she asked.

"No, thank you. I'm fine."

Well, you can sit with me while she's upstairs then." Mike smiled and sat at the kitchen table after holding her chair for her.

"You are a nice gentleman," she said to him. Mike blushed and smiled at her. The two of them made small talk for several minutes until Sam appeared in the kitchen. When Mike saw her he stood immediately, went to her and embraced her. She hugged him back, content to be in his arms again. After a moment Mike pulled away, but didn't let go of her and looked into her eyes.

"How are you holding up?" he asked.

"I'm holding my own, thanks to Miss Millie. Mind if we hang at your place a while?"

"Of course, if that's what you want. Whenever you're ready," Mike answered.

"Let's go then," she said to Mike. She stepped away from him and went to Miss Millie, hugging her. "Thank you Miss Millie, for taking care of me. I'll clean up your guest room a little later, if that is okay with you."

"Certainly, Dear," Miss Millie answered. "Have a nice time with your handsome young man." She looked at Mike as she said it and smiled when he blushed again. Sam smiled at her and turned back to Mike.

"So long." Mike said as they left.

When they reached Mike's place they sat on his couch and talked. "How was the rest of the shift?"

"Quiet," Mike answered. "The squad had a few calls and we had a small kitchen fire to deal with, but nothing major."

"That's good," Sam said. Mike was sitting in the middle of the couch facing Sam who was sitting at the end, turned towards Mike. Sam got up but before Mike could ask her where she was going she took his hand and pulled on it for him to stand up. He did and put his arms around her. She looked up into his eyes and stared at them a moment. He waited quietly for her to say what was on her mind.

"Mike, I know you want to take things slowly… I understand that."

"But you still don't want to." Mike replied softly.

"I want to be with you and to lie down in your arms and feel your body against mine and listen to the sound of your heartbeat."

"Sam, you're upset and hurt…"

Sam interrupted. "Yes! I am upset and I am hurting. But that doesn't change the way I feel about you or what I want."

Mike heard the irritation in her voice. He wanted to do right by her. He already knew he loved her. Strangely, he felt like he'd known her forever. He didn't want to cause tension at work or get into something that might not work out and end up hurting her in the process.

"Sam, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to imply that you're not thinking clearly. You told me before how you felt. I know what happened doesn't have anything to do with it. It's just that I don't want to make a mistake."

"So you're saying I'm a mistake?"

"No! Sam, that isn't what I said. I don't want to do anything that would hurt you or make you unhappy in the future. I don't want to do something that would make you not like me anymore."

"Mike, relationships are calculated risks. We all take risks. If we don't we can't get hurt, but we can't experience joy or love or anything else good if we don't either. Do you have lustful feelings for me?" She was very direct, as was her nature.

The blush that came to Mike's face gave her the answer before he spoke. "Sam…" his voice came out husky. "I do want to be with you. I want that more than you could possibly know."

"Then why wait? I'm here, right now. I'm practically throwing myself at you. Why wait?"

Mike could think of one big reason. "Does Roy know how you feel about me?"

"Why, do you think I need his permission?" Sam stepped away from Mike until she could look him in the eye without having to tilt her head up. Mike silently wondered how all of the good intentions he had were so frustrating to Sam.

"Well, I do think… maybe it would be… a good idea to at least… " Mike was deliberately thinking out his words carefully, trying not to give fuel to her argument. "…To at least let him know where we stand so he isn't blindsided."

"I don't think it is any of his business," Sam said firmly.

Mike thought about that for a moment. She was right; it wasn't Roy's business. She wasn't a child and Roy wasn't her daddy. Still Mike felt like he owed it to Roy somehow. _Why? Because they were as close as brothers? So. _

"Sam, I don't want to make you angry. I don't want to push you away either…" He didn't even know himself exactly what it was he was trying to say. He gave up trying. He stepped over to her, picked her up in his arms and carried her to his bedroom. He set her down on the bed and then climbed onto the bed next to her. He lay on his side, propped on one elbow facing her and put his hand on the side of her face, turning her to look into her eyes.

"I don't want you to regret this."

"I won't," she whispered.

Mike slid his hand down the side of her face onto her chest and over her shirt to her breast. As he explored the softness he leaned over and kissed her.

Mike's lips were soft and warm and sent a jolt through Sam's body that awakened every nerve. She felt herself start to breathe faster and her heart start to race as she closed her eyes and succumbed to the passion of Mike's kiss.

***Thanks for leaving feedback! Your comments and opinions are greatly appreciated. Hotflash**


	29. Chapter 29

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 29**

Sam let herself be lost in the moment. The warmth from Mike's hands and lips washed over her body like tropical waves. She felt the numbness she had been feeling disappear entirely and she felt warm and tingly all over. From the moment she had first laid eyes on Mike she had felt something powerful and amazing deep inside her self and she knew he was the one who would complete her.

Mike stopped kissing Sam to look into her eyes. He wanted to be sure she was okay and still wasn't sure he shouldn't insist on waiting. He was more than ready for her, but he wanted to be sure she felt as strongly as she said she did. He did not want this to end up badly. There was no going back. This was a commitment. Either that, or it would have to wait.

Sam felt his hesitation and reached out, pulling him close to her. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing. I'm just not sure we're making the right decision," he said softly.

Sam sighed softly. She wanted so much to just make love but now that he had been willing to and again had second thoughts, she knew she needed to respect that. She put her hand on his face and slid it over his cheek to his ear, smoothing his hair back and then kept her fingers entwined in his hair while she softly caressed just in front of his ear with her thumb. "Okay, let's talk about it some more." She said it softly and calmly.

Mike felt relieved that he hadn't heard frustration in her voice. He loved her and wanted to make her happy. "I am glad you said that," he said." Come here." Mike rolled away from her but pulled her with him so that he could lie on his back and hold her with her head on his chest. Holding her like this felt very natural to him.

Sam felt comfortable in Mike's arms and as he held her she could hear his heart beat, which she found very comforting. "Tell me what you're thinking."

"Oh, Sam…" Mike sighed softly. "I told you before, I'm kind of an old fashioned guy."

"I know. I like that about you even if it _is_ frustrating."

"Why is that so frustrating?" he chuckled as he asked her.

"Because. I understand where you're coming from and it is logical and gentlemanly and very knight in shining armor like. But I already know… I can feel it in my soul that I want to be with you. And I don't mean just physically. Somehow, from the first moment I saw you I knew we were meant to be together."

"Really? The first moment?" Mike was surprised. He had felt it too but he hadn't expressed it to her. "How?"

"How did I know?" Sam pulled her head away to look up and into his face as he looked back at her. "I don't know exactly. When I walked in to the station that first day, I looked at you standing there with the other men and all of you were staring at me, dumbstruck because you hadn't expected a woman in the uniform. I looked each one of you in the eye and when I got to you it was like… a heated blanket had been wrapped around my shoulders, and my heart skipped a beat. I just knew right then that we were going to be together. And then when we kept bumping into each other by accident, any last doubt in my mind disappeared. Then you kissed me. I've never felt such passion in my life."

"Wow!" was all Mike said.

Sam raised an eyebrow at him and stared in his eyes for a moment. "Wow? That's it? Wow?"

Mike smiled. "I guess I'm just amazed that you knew so quickly how you felt about me, about us I mean. You hadn't even met me yet and you felt like we were meant to be together. And then all of our awkward moments just reaffirmed that for you didn't they?"

"Yes, they did."

"I felt it too."

"Felt what?" Sam asked putting her head back on his chest and listening to his heartbeat again.

"Almost what you described. I felt like I was standing very close to a large campfire and its heat was radiating over my body. And _my_ heart felt like it skipped a beat too."

"Oh, wow!" Sam said.

"That's it? Wow?" said Mike and they both laughed.

After they stopped laughing Sam changed positions, rolling onto her stomach and propping her self up on her elbows. Mike rolled to his side propped on an elbow facing her. "So now what?" Mike asked her.

Sam looked him in the eye not answering right away. She knew what she wanted to say but didn't know how he would take it. For once she felt a little intimidated to say what was on her mind. When she finally opened her mouth to speak she couldn't bring herself to say what was on her mind and closed it again.

"What? What do you want to say?" Mike encouraged her to speak her mind.

_Do I ask or don't I?_ Sam thought to herself. She couldn't decide. "I love you."

"I love you too, but that doesn't answer my question. Where do we go from here?" Mike asked her again.

In her mind, Sam flashed back to the day of the football game at Mike's place. _I'm kind of an old fashioned guy. I kind of like the chase. _She heard those words again as if he was saying them out loud to her at that very moment. She realized then that she should not say what was on her mind. She needed to allow him to lead. No matter how sure she was and no matter how badly she wanted to be forever one with Mike, she knew she had to wait until it was his idea.

"Wherever you want to," Sam said. "I'll wait as long as you want me to."

Mike smiled broadly. "Lady, you are amazing!" Then he gathered her back in his arms and kissed her gently. They stayed there cuddling and talking most of the day. And finally, Sam was at peace with it all.

When she opened her eyes, Sam slowly realized that she had been asleep. It was dark in the room and she gradually became aware that she was alone. She sat up slowly and rubbed her eyes with the backs of her hands then smoothed her hair back and stood up. She walked to the door and wandered off to the living room where she found Mike sitting in his recliner watching the news. She walked over to him and settled herself across his lap in the chair and put her head on his shoulder. Mike wrapped his arm around her and kissed her on the forehead.

"Hey Beautiful. You woke up."

"Mmm hmm."

"I was surprised you slept so long."

"I felt comfortable. And I was having good dreams."

"What about?"

"An amazing and sexy firefighter with a nice ass."

"You know her too?" Mike asked, playfully turning the table on her.

Sam smacked him on the shoulder in return.

"Are you ready for dinner?" Mike asked Sam, changing the subject.

"I am. What are we having?"

"Shrimp salad and crab cakes."

The two of them enjoyed a quiet, candle lit meal complete with wine and soft music then shared another hour of slow dancing and talking before Mike took her back home to Miss Milly.

Mike walked her to the door and after she fished her keys out of her purse, he unlocked it and held it for her.

"What, no kiss goodnight?" Sam asked.

Mike closed the door that Sam had not entered through and wrapped his arms around her. He planted a three-alarm kiss that left Sam breathless and said, "Have good dreams!" Then he turned and walked back to his truck. He left her happy and flustered at the same time. From his truck he watched to make sure she was safely inside the house and then drove home to take a cold shower.

***Thanks again for the amazing encouragement and honest feedback all of you have been so generous with. Please keep it up! -Hotflash**


	30. Chapter 30

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 30**

Sharon heard the knock on her door at 7:30. She all but ran to the door and, after checking through the peephole, opened it and planted a hot kiss on her fiancé's lips before allowing him to walk through the door.

"Good morning to you too," said Johnny happily.

Sharon giggled and said, "Good morning!"

Johnny looked Sharon over carefully. She was still in a robe, not dressed to go. "Sharon, You're not ready!"

Sharon looked toward the floor for a moment. "I'm sorry. I just wanted today to be perfect and I still haven't made up my mind what I want to wear."

"Wear anything, well, almost. Not the robe!" Johnny reached for the tie of the robe playfully.

Sharon dodged his reach and raced off to her room slamming the door in her haste to shut him out. "Johnny you are SO bad and you know it!" she shouted through the door. "I'll figure it out and be out in a few minutes!"

"My idea sounded like more fun!" Johnny shouted back.

"Go have some coffee. You know where it is."

Johnny chuckled and strolled off towards the kitchen. He poured himself a cup of steaming coffee and smelled it. "Mmmmmm… She does make a good cup of coffee. I might have to keep her around." Johnny said it out loud. Then he chuckled again and took his coffee with him to sit on the deck and watch the happenings in the park across the way.

Johnny was surprised when Sharon appeared within 20 minutes. He had expected her to take a whole lot longer but she came out looking cute in a cream colored tank top under a short sleeved light green blouse that was unbuttoned and had the tails tied together in front. Around her neck was the necklace he had given her with the sapphire and diamond locket. Her shapely legs were emphasized by the faded blue cut-offs and sandals, from which perfectly polished toenails peeked out. She wore her hair down for a change and it fell softly around her shoulders in loose curls, framing her face. The sight of her took Johnny's breath away.

"You look incredible!" he finally managed to say. He stood up and kissed her as she gladly melted into his arms. After a moment she pulled back and looked in his liquid brown eyes that were definitely full of desire.

"We should go. We're already running a little late," she said to him.

"Right. Okay, let's go," he said with his head still in the clouds. He leaned over and picked his coffee cup up off the railing of the balcony. On his way through the apartment, Johnny dropped the cup off at the sink. As they left the apartment Johnny held the door for Sharon and pulled it closed behind them. Sharon locked it and the two walked down to the Rover to head to the L.A. Zoo where they would meet Sharon's Aunt Tania and her daughter Becca.

It was a warm clear day out and the zoo parking lot was already filling. Johnny found the closest spot he could and parked the Rover. He looked over at Sharon. "I can't wait to meet her."

Sharon smiled. She had been thinking about Johnny and Becca during the drive to the zoo. She hoped Becca would be in a good mood and that her Aunt Tania would approve of Johnny. She hadn't told Tania of her engagement yet. When she sat there thinking to herself and didn't respond to Johnny's comment, Johnny grew concerned.

"Sharon, is something wrong?"

She looked into his eyes. "Wrong? No. Not really. I guess I'm just a little nervous."

"Why?"

"Well, my aunt has had Becca her whole life. What if she doesn't like…" Sharon didn't want to finish her sentence.

"Don't worry. I'll be on my best behavior. It's going to be fine." He reached over and took her hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"I know you're right. I'm just nervous."

"Maybe I can help. I'm a paramedic and I think I have something for that." Johnny said. He leaned over and kissed her gently.

"That does make it better." Sharon said when he stopped. "Let's go see Becca!"

Johnny got out of the Rover and stepped around to open the door for Sharon. He held out his hand for her and helped her out then locked the vehicle and the two walked to the zoo entrance. Johnny paid their admission fee and they walked in. "Where are we supposed to meet?" Johnny asked.

"By the seals. Becca loves to feed the seals."

Johnny and Sharon walked hand in hand through the zoo to find the seals. Sharon, having met there often, knew right where they were going and in no time they were there. Several small children were there with their grown-ups. Some were standing at the edge of the seal tanks staring in at them while others were throwing food at them and still others were standing in line to buy food for them. For just a little bit of nothing the vendor was selling a small waxed paper pouch containing several chunks of cut up fish.

Johnny scanned through the faces around the seal tanks trying to see if he could figure out which faces belonged to Aunt Tania and Becca. There were two carrot top little girls amongst the groups of zoo visitors. One was throwing fish chunks to the seals and laughing each time she did so. The other was in line to buy some fish. The one in line seemed to be with two people. There was a very tall redheaded woman standing near her with a skinny teenager who had strawberry blonde hair. The other toddler carrot top was being supervised by a short blonde woman. Both of the women with toddlers looked to be in their early to mid forties, so age was not a clue. And even though Sharon was on the short side herself, Johnny had a hunch the tall woman and blonde teenager were the ones who had Becca. He looked at Sharon and pointed to the three in line.

"Is that them?" he asked.

Sharon scanned the line of people and smiled. "Yes!" She ran over to them and called her baby's name. "Becca, it's Mommy."

Becca looked up and when she saw Sharon she let go of Tania's hand and reached out for her. Sharon picked up her little girl and hugged her, then planted several kisses on her cheeks. "Hi sweetie! Mama missed you!"

"Feed seals?" the little girl questioned.

"Yes, baby. We'll feed the seals." Sharon smiled. Then she greeted her Aunt. "Hi Aunt Tania. How are you?"

"Wonderful. We picked a beautiful day for this, didn't we?" She said. "Who's your friend?"

Johnny immediately held out his hand. "I'm Johnny Gage." He flashed his best smile.

"Aunt Tania, this is my friend Johnny. Johnny, this is my Aunt Tania. And this," she said, turning towards the teenager, "is my cousin Amber." Johnny shook Tania's hand and then Amber's.

"Very nice to meet you," he said. He looked at Becca in her mother's arms. She was grasping the locket around Sharon's neck and enjoying the texture of it in her hands. "You must be Becca," he said to her. "Hi, I'm a friend of your Mommy's."

Becca looked up at him when she heard her name, but she was much more interested in the locket she was playing with.

Tania was sure by the way Johnny looked at Sharon and Becca that he was more than a friend. "So, how did you two meet?" she asked. Johnny wasn't sure if she was asking him or Sharon. He looked at Sharon and she widened her eyes at him as if to tell him he should answer.

"Ah, we met at Rampart… the hospital. I'm a paramedic with the Los Angeles County Fire Department."

"Far out." Answered Tania with a grin. Just then it was her turn to buy fish.

"How many, Miss?" The impatient vendor asked her.

"Two please." Tania answered quickly.

The man held his hand out for the money. Tania began digging in her purse but before she found her wallet, Johnny had handed the man a five-dollar bill. "I've got this," he said.

The man made change and handed it back to him. Then he handed two waxed pouches of fish to Johnny. Even though the fish was on the inside of the pouches, the outsides of them were sort of slimy and the smell was strong. Johnny made a bit of a face without realizing it.

"It's kind of gross isn't it?" laughed Amber.

Becca was already squirming in Sharon's arms trying to get at it, the locket long since forgotten.

Johnny grinned. "Becca doesn't seem to think so."

Sharon put Becca down so she wouldn't drop the squirming bundle of energy. She took her by the hand. "Come on, we'll give you some in a minute. Let's go see the seals."

"Seals are hongy!" Becca stated.

"Yes, the seals are hungry. And you can feed them in just a minute." Sharon answered.

Sharon walked Becca to the nearer seal tank and picked her up again, setting her down on the outer rail of the double rail along the barrier to the tank. She put her arms around Becca's waist and held onto her like she was a seatbelt for her child. "Okay, she can have a pouch now," Sharon said. "What do you say, Becca?"

"Pease I have it?" asked Becca.

Johnny stepped closer to Sharon and Becca and held out a pouch. Becca took it with both hands and held it close to her body.

"Thank you," Becca said as clear as a bell.

"You are very welcome!" Johnny smiled a big crooked smile. Becca was as cute as could be.

Becca was having a wonderful time feeding the seals. She was patient enough to throw only once piece of food at a time, but she always had the next piece in her hand at the ready. As soon as a seal would catch the fish she would laugh and throw the next one. It didn't take any time at all to go through the first pouch. She held the empty pouch out and said, "Uh oh. All gone."

"Yep, you gave it all to them." Johnny said, taking the empty pouch from her.

Becca pointed at the other tank. "Seals hongy!" she said.

Johnny chuckled. "So that's why we needed two pouches."

Sharon lifted Becca off the railing and carried her over to the other seal tank. When Sharon had her securely seated with her arms around her again Johnny handed Becca the other pouch. The three of them hadn't noticed that Tania and Amber had remained at the first tank.

Tania was watching the three of them interacting together. Sharon seemed surprisingly at ease with him and Becca didn't seem at all concerned at this stranger. Usually she got kind of whiny around new people but she hadn't been whiny at all. _Maybe it's because the seals have distracted her_, thought Tania.

Amber had been watching them too. She turned to her mother. "I think they're more than friends, mom."

She's lucky. He's cute!"

"I'm sure you are correct, Amber. On all three counts." Sharon hadn't really dated much since she had fled from Becca's father. Tania was glad to see her looking comfortable with Johnny, and happy. Johnny seemed to be at ease with Becca too. That was another good sign.

"I think she brought him here to meet Becca," said Tania. She looked at her daughter to see what kind of reaction that would bring.

Amber responded with a look of surprise. "Oh no. Mom, what if… what if she wants to take Becca?

Tania looked down at her concerned 16 year-old. Becca is _her_ daughter. You know that. We were never supposed to keep her forever."

"But mom, she's… she's like my sister!"

"Calm down, Amber. We're jumping to conclusions anyway." She glanced back at the three of them in time to see Sharon lift Becca off the rails. "Come on, they'll be looking for us in a second." The two walked over to the three. Becca was standing on the ground with Sharon squatting next to her. Becca's hands were opening and closing as she stared at them.

"Ucky hands." She said.

"Mine too." Said Johnny.

"The bathrooms are right there," said Sharon pointing a few yards away. "Why don't you go wash them? I'll take her and change her and get hers washed too."

"Sounds good." Johnny agreed. He started looking around for the others, just as they walked up to them.

"We're just gonna get, ah… cleaned up." He said distracted by what appeared to be a glare on Amber's face.

Tania took the diaper bag off the handle to the stroller and handed it to Sharon. "You'll probably need this," she said smiling. "We'll wait for you over there." She pointed to a bench that was currently unoccupied.

While Johnny, Sharon and Becca were gone, Tania and Amber sat and talked.

"Amber, I know that we have had Becca here since she was born, but that doesn't mean she's ours. Your cousin was in a bad situation. She wanted to have Becca but she knew that if she was going to support a child on her own, she had to find a good job. That meant she had to stay in school. She didn't abandon Becca, honey. She made a hard choice to do what was best for her. The plan has always been for her to take Becca back when she could support her."

"I know, Mom. I guess… I guess I just didn't think it would happen. I like having Becca with us."

"Well, you _knew_ it would happen. You just didn't want to think about it, right?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

"I understand. I like having Becca here too. I wouldn't want to send her away, but if and when Sharon says she's ready, we have to respect that. Let's try not to worry about it and enjoy the day, okay? If Sharon did bring Mr. Gage here today to meet her daughter, we need to make sure we don't get in the way of them getting to know each other. So far, I think he is a nice young man. Don't you?"

Amber blushed. Her mother was well aware of the crush she was developing already, but she didn't know that Johnny was just walking up and probably heard the tail end of the conversation. "Yes, I think Becca likes him." She stood up, bringing attention to the fact that Johnny had walked over to them.

"Oh, you're back," said Tania. "Little ones take a little longer."

"I know. My partner has kids. I spend a lot of time with his family. They're sure cute at Becca's age. I love how excited she was when she was feeding the seals! And I was surprised that she only threw one piece at a time. She has quite an arm on her for a little squirt. I'll bet she plays ball when she's older." Johnny chuckled at the thought.

"Sounds like you enjoy spending time with kids." Tania observed.

"Yeah, kids are great! Roy's kids… Roy's my partner… they love when ol' Uncle Johnny comes over. I play Barbie's with Katie and practice first aid skills with Chris. They chase me everywhere and climb all over me. Sometimes we go to my place and I teach them riding skills. They're a lot of fun."

Tania and Amber could both plainly see that Johnny's delight in children was genuine. Just then Sharon and Becca arrived at the bench all freshened up.

"Guess who went potty in the potty?" Sharon said, smiling and making a big deal out of it.

"Oh Becca, did you do that?" Tania asked her. Becca answered with a grand nod of her head.

"Oh, sweetie, Auntie's so proud of you!"

"Where shall we go next?" asked Sharon.

"Wions!" Becca exclaimed.

"Okay, lions it is," Sharon proclaimed. The five of them spent the next couple of hours walking around the zoo in haphazard fashion. Becca was giving the directions and they were happily obliging her, even though it meant there was no logical order to their visit and they did a lot of back-tracking. Becca was having loads of fun, but she was getting tired and after a while, Johnny offered to carry her on his shoulders. Becca had never been carried that way before and was a little hesitant at first, but once Johnny assured her that he would not let go of her legs and she was perfectly safe, she had a wonderful time.

Although Becca had been snacking periodically from small containers stashed in the diaper bag, by 1:00 everyone was tired and hungry. Johnny offered to take everyone to lunch so they piled into their vehicles and Tania followed the Rover to a Sambo's restaurant. Once seated at the table, the waitress brought crayons over for Becca to color on her kid's menu.

After lunch, it was time to say goodbye. Becca did not want her mommy to leave and Sharon did not want to leave her. They went through this every visit and it broke Sharon's heart every time. When Johnny drove Sharon away in the Rover, they could still hear Becca crying in her Auntie's arms and Sharon had tears streaming down her face, causing black streaks of mascara to stain her cheeks.

Johnny drove with one hand, holding Sharon's hand with his other. He drove a short distance away then pulled into a parking lot where he parked the Rover and shut it off. He then reached over and pulled Sharon to him and held her while she cried. It was cramped and uncomfortable that way in the seats, but Johnny ignored his discomfort, concerned only for Sharon. After a while the sobs stopped and Sharon pulled away to look for a tissue. Johnny found her a napkin in the glove box and Sharon wiped her eyes and then her nose. She looked at Johnny.

"I hate leaving her. She's being well taken care of and my Aunt has been amazing, but I want her with me. I miss her so much."

"She misses you too, looks like." Johnny said. "Is there some kind of custody issue?"

"No… nothing like that. As I said before, I gave temporary guardianship to my aunt. The plan was that I would go to nursing school, get a job and get on my feet so I could support us, then I would take Becca back. I'll have my hours in and take my exam this spring. But I still can't afford to bring her home, and I certainly couldn't afford the daycare costs."

"Sharon, bring her home."

Sharon looked at him blankly.

"Bring her home. We'll manage. I make enough to support her and with my work schedule, she won't have to be in daycare all the time. I'll pay for it when she does."

"Really Johnny? Do you mean that?" Sharon could not believe that she might soon bring her daughter home.

"Yes. Bring her home." Johnny said again.

"There's so much to do first. I don't even have a room for her. I'll have to move."

"Move in with me. I have plenty of room."

"Johnny, we're not married yet. I can't do that."

"No, hear me out. I'll be a perfect gen… er… I'll be a… um… I'll be good! You can have your own room. I'll sleep on the couch. Becca will have her own room. Then when we're married I'll come back to the bedroom."

"I don't think we should live together until we're married." Sharon said. "It's too hard to… you know."

"Then let's get married right away. We can see a justice of the peace. 'Course, you probably want the whole wedding. I couldn't blame you." Johnny said.

"I'd give that up for my baby." Sharon said brightly.

"You don't have to. We can have a special ceremony later, if you want, I mean."

Sharon reached over and hugged him tightly. "You're the best, Johnny. I love you."

"I love you too. Will you let me adopt Becca?" he asked. That started the waterworks all over.

"Yes, yes! Oh, Johnny, that would be so wonderful. How did I get so lucky to find you?" Sharon asked, blinking through her tears.

"Actually, I think I found you. And I'm the lucky one. I got two princesses out of the deal." Johnny said with his lopsided grin. "Can we go home now? The sooner we do the sooner we can start packing."

"Well, you're driving. What's taking you so long?" Sharon asked playfully.

Johnny leaned over and kissed her and then started the Rover to head for home. He couldn't recall ever feeling this happy and he knew this was just the beginning.

***Thanks for all the kind feedback you have been sending me. I'm trying to wrap this up, really I am. Hopefully I will within the next few chapters. If there is anything you feel is incomplete, speak up now so I can consider it before it is too late! Thanks. I'll be searching the reviews! -Hotflash**


	31. Chapter 31

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 31**

Johnny stepped into the station extra early the next morning. He had an extra bounce in his step and his eyes twinkled brightly as he greeted his C shift friends in an astonishingly chipper fashion.

"Good morning, good mornin', good mornin'!" He bounded over to the coffee pot and poured himself a fresh cup of the hot brew. Surveying the faces in the room he was surprised to see JJ had worked his shift.

"How you holdin' up there, JJ?" he asked.

"I'm okay. Had to get back in the saddle."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. Who's workin' with you?" Johnny had glanced around the room and not seen another paramedic.

"Hanks. He's in talking to the cap. I guess he probably wanted Billy's impression of my state of mind."

"Now don't take it personally JJ. You know Cap just wants to make sure you're all right and Hanks spent the most time with you on the shift." Mike, the C-shift engineer was the voice of reason.

"Linker's right ya know."

"Yeah, I know. How's Sam holding up?"

"I don't know yet. I haven't seen her. She wasn't around when I called her yesterday to see. I guess you can see for yourself in about 20 more minutes," Johnny said.

"I… I know it was… rough on her."

"Yeah, well… it was just as rough for you JJ. It's rough for all of us. She'll make it." Johnny said.

"Hey, Johnny…" Billy spotted him as he walked in from the cap's office.

"Billy, how's it goin' man?"

"Not bad. I think I might actually be getting the hang of this whole paramedic thing," he said jokingly.

"Well, geez man, it only took you what, three years?" I think that's a record." Laughter followed the kidding around but then Billy got a more serious look on his face.

"Hey, ah, JJ?" Started Billy.

JJ looked him in the eye. "Yeah, man, what is it?"

"I wondered if I could talk to you a minute."

"Sure, what about?"

"Uh, I gotta go get something outta my car," said Johnny, turning to make a hasty exit.

"Yeah, me too." Linker hurriedly followed behind Johnny.

"Did you change out those air bottles when we got back Joe?" One of the linemen asked another as the two of them got up to make their way out of the room.

"Well, JJ," Billy started. He took a deep breath. "I know you uh, you probably don't want to think about it so soon, but…"

"Just say it, Hanks." JJ didn't have much patience. He was ready for the shift change and wanted to go home to bed.

"Well, I was just talking to the cap about… about a transfer. I'd like to be partners."

JJ stared at Billy without saying a word. Billy coming on as his partner would make JJ the junior paramedic. Billy had a year and a half seniority. It didn't make a difference in pay but it made for different dynamics on the job. Billy would be incident commander when their squad was first on the scene. JJ had filled that role for a year himself.

"JJ?" Billy was hoping to get some sort of response. "What do you think about that?"

"Is it a done deal?"

"What?" questioned Billy.

"Have you put in for it yet? Has the cap signed off?" With Billy's seniority, JJ wouldn't have much choice.

"No!" Billy was quick to answer. "I wanted to talk to you about it first. I won't do it if it's… if you ask me not to, I'll understand."

"Why?"

"Why?" Billy repeated. "Because I know you've already been senior para…"

"No. Why do you want to transfer?" JJ interrupted.

Billy looked thoughtful for a moment letting out a loud exhale before answering. "Well, lots of reasons really. One is I trained here and it's always just felt more like home than any other station, I guess. Another reason is that you're a top notch paramedic. You remind me a lot of DeSoto with your calm demeanor and rational decision making. And you're in need of a partner. I want to work with a guy who's willing to learn _and_ to teach and cap say's you definitely fit the bill. And, I like you, man. I think we can work together without wanting to kill each other, which is more than I can say for a lot of the guys!"

Billy's last reason brought an actual chuckle from JJ and he smiled. "So, you're saying it's up to me weather or not you put in the transfer?" JJ needed clarification to be sure he understood correctly.

"Yeah, that's what I'm saying."

"Can I think about it?"

"Sure," Billy smiled. "Take as much time as you need… just as long as you let me know by the end of the shift."

JJ looked at his watch. It was 7:52. He looked Billy in the eye and saw a kind hearted, conscientious paramedic looking back at him. He took a deep breath in through his nose and let it out slowly through his mouth. "Ya know, I think we just might make a crack paramedic team. Ok. Let's do it."

Billy's smile got a lot bigger and he breathed out an audible sigh of relief. "Really? You sure?" JJ nodded. "Thanks man!"

"Hanks?" JJ got his attention back.

"Yeah?"

"Thank _you_!" The boost of confidence that JJ felt was just what he needed. Billy Hanks _wanted_ to be his partner. Billy had already made a reputation for himself in the department. JJ felt it an honor that Billy had even asked. The two paramedics slapped each other on the back appreciatively and headed for the locker room to end what had been one long shift, but JJ didn't feel nearly as beat and tired as he had a few minutes ago.

The A shift crew were talking in the bay behind the engine when they saw Hanks and Merker walk out of the locker room together and out the door to the parking lot, narrowly escaping being knocked down by Chet who ran in characteristically close to the mark. Roy looked at Mike.

"I think it's safe to go in now." The firefighters nodded in agreement and they headed to the day room for coffee.

"I wonder what was so serious." Marco commented.

"If it is serious," said Roy. "I'm sure we'll find out about it soon enough."

"Sam walked into the day room a moment later."

"Hey, there she is!" Said Johnny still full of energy. "How you holding up?"

"I'm doing fine, Johnny. Nothing like a few days off to help one find a little perspective." She stole a quick glance Mike's direction, making brief eye contact when she said it. Mike smiled but turned toward the coffee pot, grateful for a reason to turn away before anybody noticed.

Mike thought to himself. _This is really going to be awkward. I need to talk to Roy._

"Roll call, gentlemen… Sam." Captain Stanley poked his head in.

Setting down cups of coffee there hadn't been time to drink, the A-shift crew headed for the apparatus bay. They lined up quickly along side the squad, their captain looking each one over carefully.

"Good morning gent… guys!" Hank said, correcting himself. As old fashioned as he was, Hank could get used to including Sam with the term "guys" but "gentlemen" just wasn't going to work for him. Old habits die hard though and it was a struggle to retrain the words that rolled out so easily every morning at roll call.

"Good morning, Cap," they all said, not quite in sync with one another.

"The crisis counselor will be here today for any of you who might want to uh, say hello," Hank informed his crew diplomatically. They all knew that really meant "in case anyone wants to talk." He looked directly at Sam. "How are you holding up, Anderson?" he asked.

"Well, sir. My day's off were very therapeutic."

"I'm glad to hear that, but if you're not ready for this, you need to let me know now."

"I'm fine, Sir. I can handle this. Thank you."

"You're welcome." In Hank's observation of her, she did appear to be well put together and mostly seemed herself.

"Chief Houts wanted everyone to know, the memorial service for Dave will be held at St Francis during our next shift. A notice has gone out requesting volunteers to cover our station so that you all may attend. Chief say's he'll keep us posted on that. If replacements are not found, we will be allowed to attend as long as we stay in service. Hopefully, it will not come to that." Hank watched as each nodded an acknowledgement.

After the rest of the announcements had been made, Hank assigned station chores and dismissed the crew. While Johnny and Sam ran through the daily inventory and check of the squad, Roy had been assigned to scrub and hang hoses with Mike and Marco. As luck would have it for Mike, Marco did not join them right away because he stayed back to speak with the crisis counselor.

The two men made quick work of stretching out hoses in preparation for scrubbing them. Roy noticed Mike was quieter than usual.

"Something wrong Mike?" He asked.

"No. Nothing's wrong." Mike answered too quickly and he knew it.

"Right." Roy looked at Mike with a grin. When they made eye contact, Mike looked away quickly.

"So what is it you don't want to talk about?" Roy asked.

Mike looked at Roy again, motioning for him to toss a scrub brush his direction. "That obvious, huh?"

"Yeah, kind of." Roy answered.

"All right. We're friends, right? Brothers even?" Mike started rather tentatively.

"Yeah."

"Good. Okay, well…" Mike wasn't sure exactly what to say. What would he want to hear if he was Roy?

"I uh, I kind of don't now where to start," Mike admitted. "It… it's about your sister." Mike was stalling trying to find words for what he wanted to say.

"What about her?" Roy asked.

"Roy I… I like your sister… a lot," Mike confessed.

"When you say 'like' do you mean, 'she's a nice person, you get along well,' or are you implying you have stronger feelings for her?" Roy wanted to be sure he was clear about what Mike was saying, though he knew already what the answer would be. He had seen the looks Mike and Sam gave each other and he had seen Mike checking her out.

Before Mike could answer the klaxons went off.

Squad 51, traffic accident, pedestrian down…

Roy raced off to the squad as the dispatcher provided the information needed. By the time he had reached the squad, Johnny and Sam were already seated with their helmets on. Johnny handed Roy the call slip. After a quick glance Roy handed it back, frowning. As the squad pulled out of the station Roy commented, "This could be a really bad one. That's a school zone."

Instantly in her mind Sam flashed back to Dave rolling across the lanes of traffic and then she saw the truck roll over him. She felt suddenly queasy as she involuntarily shuddered. Her reaction did not go unnoticed by the two seasoned paramedics.

"Deep slow breaths, Sam," Roy instructed. At the same time Johnny gave her a reassuring pat on the knee.

"It's all right," Johnny said. "You're gonna be just fine. We're right here with you."

Sam concentrated on her breathing to push the ugly scene out of her head. She thought to herself; _in through the nose, out through the mouth. Deep slow breaths._ She was glad Roy and Johnny were there with her. Their reassurance was comforting.

"There!" Stated Sam as she pointed ahead to a boy curled up on the ground. There were two women hovering over him and a traffic cop who looked very relieved to see the paramedics roll onto the scene.

Roy brought the squad to a somewhat screeching halt and the three of them hopped into action.

Johnny knelt down to start the initial assessment of the patient but Roy tapped him gently on the shoulder as Sam squatted on the other side of the young boy.

Johnny let Sam take the lead. She needed a good save. She needed to feel like she was making a difference. Johnny turned to the hovering women who had stepped barely far enough aside to allow the paramedics to work.

"Did either of you see the accident? Can you tell me what happened?" asked Johnny.

The older of the two women who seemed to be in her mid sixties started talking rapidly. "I… I was turning left and I didn't see him. I know he wasn't there. I was stopped at the red light and then it turned green. My blinker was on and I looked. There wasn't any traffic coming and I turned. The road was clear. Then I heard this terrible sound. Like a WHUMP! And that lady…" she pointed to the other woman just two feet away from her. "She started screaming. She was on the sidewalk. Well, she scared me half out of my wits with all that screaming. I stopped the car and got out and then I saw him. He was lying there, curled up like that. He was making an awful noise. He's quieter now, thank goodness. He's gonna be okay isn't he? I mean you're here now. He's not gonna die is he?" Her eyes were pleading with Johnny as she spoke frantically begging for reassurance.

A police officer came over and pulled the younger woman aside to talk to her about the incident.

"Ma'am we're doing everything we can for him. We're gonna take real good care of him." Johnny reassured the woman again. "Why don't you come over here and sit down. I'd like to take a look at you and make sure you're okay. You've had a big scare." Johnny led her to the curb and helped her sit down. He took her pulse and blood pressure, asking her if she was hurt anywhere. He talked with her and tried to get her to calm down, continuously reassuring her that the boy was being taken care of. He gave her some oxygen as he spoke with her.

"He's not going to die is he?" She kept asking.

"No Ma'am. Not if we can help it he's not. We're gonna take him to the hospital. There's the ambulance now."

Roy and Sam had the boy c-collared, back boarded and packaged to go. They had started an IV as ordered and were ready to transport when the ambulance arrived. Roy looked at Johnny.

"How's she doing?" he asked of Johnny's patient.

"She's doing fine, but I think it would be a good idea to take her to Rampart, just to be sure."

"Right. I'll go with Sam; you drive the squad. We can take her in the ambulance with us," Roy directed.

Just then another car came screeching to a halt behind the squad. A man in his 20's practically flew to the ambulance when he got out of the car. "Where's my boy? I spoke to the officer on the phone. What happened?" Roy talked to the man briefly before convincing him to get back in his car and follow the ambulance to the hospital.

The paramedics were standing at Dixie's desk when Doctor Morton came out of the treatment room. "Good job you three," he said.

"How is he, Doc?" Sam asked.

"He's got a couple of broken ribs and a pretty good bump on the head, but I expect a full recovery."

"That's good," said Roy. "Any word on the woman we brought in?"

"Doctor Early was with her. You'll have to ask him," Doctor Morton informed them.

"Thanks, Doc." Johnny said.

A few minutes after Doctor Morton walked away the three paramedics were getting ready to head back to the squad. As they were walking down the hall they heard Joe Early's voice and turned to see he had stopped at the desk to talk with Dixie. Roy walked back towards him. Joe looked up at him, smiling.

"Hi, Doc. We were just wondering, how's the woman we brought in?" he asked. The phone at the desk rang and Dixie answered it while Joe and Roy talked.

"She's resting. Her bp was up and she was pretty worked up about the whole thing. I gave her a mild sedative. She'll be fine."

"That's real good. Thanks, Doc." Roy smiled at Dixie and started to turn to leave.

"Ah, Roy, before you go, that was the boy's dad calling from his room. He wanted to know if you three were still here. He'd like to talk to you if you have a minute."

Roy looked at his partners who just shrugged in return. "Sure, okay. What room is he in?"

"Treatment three, they're waiting on a room in pediatrics." Dixie said.

The three of them made their way to room three. Roy held the door and Sam stepped through first, followed by Johnny and then Roy. She made eye contact with the boy's father. The boy was asleep.

"How's he doing?" asked Sam.

"Fine, fine. The doc said he'd be okay. He said you guys did a good job and kept him from puncturing a lung or something."

"We were just doing our jobs, sir," Sam said. Roy and Johnny nodded in agreement.

"You guys are okay. Thanks." The father said. Looking Sam in the eye he said, "So, you're a paramedic and you're a firem… fire… fighter?"

"Yes, Sir." Sam confirmed.

"Must be hard work. Do you like it?" he asked.

"Very much."

"Well, I just wanted to be able to say thanks for all you did for my boy. It's just the two of us, his mom… she… we lost her last year. You look a lot like her and he thought… he thought his mom took care of him today."

"Sounds like you two have had it pretty rough." Sam said, not knowing what else to say.

"We're doing okay. It's hard but we take it one day at a time. I just wanted you to know what a difference you've made for my son."

"Thanks," Sam said, choking up. "I appreciate that." She looked back at Roy and Johnny who were standing there quietly. "Well, guys, I guess we better get back to the barn." They nodded at her as she turned back to the father. "So long. Take care."

The father reached out to shake Sam's hand and afterwards, the three paramedics slipped quietly out the door.

Sam was very quiet on the drive from the hospital back to the barn. Her partners let her take the time to think and didn't interrupt the silence on the way back. Just as they were pulling into the station she said to them, "That was a good call. Not that the boy got hurt but the way it turned out. He's gonna be okay and it just went well." She couldn't seem to put into words how she felt, but her spirits were lifted and she felt more confident in her abilities as a paramedic.

"Yeah," Roy said. "It's nice when they have a good ending."

After the three of them had washed up, Johnny and Sam headed in for coffee and Roy headed to the office to fill out the log. He was just finishing up when Mike knocked on the doorframe. Roy looked up.

"Hey Mike. I was just finishing the log."

"Yeah. Uh, you have a few minutes?" he asked.

"Sure. Is this about my sister?"

"Yeah, I didn't get to finish earlier. You wanna give me a hand in the hose tower?" Mike was trying to find a private place to talk. The last thing he needed was one of the guys eavesdropping on a personal conversation.

Roy followed Mike to the tower and they climbed the stairs in silence. Once at the top Roy leaned against the wall with his arms folded across his chest and absently chewed on his lower lip. Mike leaned against the inner rail of the tower with his hands resting on the rail on either side of him. Mike made eye contact with Roy but didn't quite know what he wanted to say so there was an almost uncomfortable silence between them. Roy finally broke the ice.

"Mike, whatever's on your mind, just let 'er rip. I can't read your mind."

"Sam and I… we've been spending some time together." Mike said. Roy nodded an acknowledgement but didn't comment. "That day she ate all that smoke saving that girl I was worried about her. I mean we all were. I couldn't believe it when she came out of that fire."

"That was some fire." Roy commented.

"After that, we kept… running into each other. It wasn't on purpose, we were both just out running errands, but we kept crossing paths." He looked at Roy to see if he could read anything in his expression. He couldn't.

"Go on." Roy encouraged him.

"Well, she was feeling like crap and I wanted to make sure she took care of herself so I just had her stay at my place until the game that night. We uh… we…" Mike had a hard time talking to Roy about it.

"You didn't sleep with my sister, did you?" Roy asked and then instantly regretted asking, knowing it was none of his business. He knew it wasn't his place, but he felt protective of Sam.

"No! No I didn't, Roy." Mike emphatically answered. "But… we both realized… we both have feelings for each other."

"I see," said Roy. He was trying very hard to let his feelings show. He hated that Sam chose to fight fires. It was dangerous work. He didn't want her to fall in love with a fireman because he didn't want to see her heart broken if something went wrong. Still, he knew it was not his call to make. And he knew she had a better chance of finding a fireman than a civilian who would accept her, simply because of her career choice. Most men would want her to give it up and Roy knew she would never do that. "So why are you telling me this?" Roy asked.

"Because we're like brothers. I thought you should know. Sam and I are serious. I know we haven't known each other that long, but our feelings are deep. I wanted you to know because I respect you. She's your sister and a guy doesn't date a friends' sister without his blessing."

Roy looked at Mike. He had to give the guy credit. He was doing everything right, so far. He was respecting Sam and her family. Roy liked Mike and knew he was a solid, down to earth guy. Mike would be good for Sam. Maybe help her level out a bit. She had a way of jumping in feet first, eyes closed. Maybe Mike would balance her with his calm, logical way of thinking.

"Mike, you don't need my blessing… Sam doesn't need my approval or permission to have a relationship. She's all grown up. As much as I want to be the big brother and take care of her, she's doing a pretty good job of taking care of herself. I have to let her."

"Just the same, Roy, it's important to me. And she'd never admit it, but I know it is to her too."

"All right. Then you have my blessing. But Mike, be careful. She has always had a tendency to jump in and take off running in everything she does. Please watch out for her and make sure she's sure what she wants."

"I've been learning that about her," Mike said. "I'll take care of her. I promise."

"Good. And if you hurt her, I'll have to kill you." Roy said it lightly but he meant it too, and Mike knew it.

The two men laughed and then Roy suggested they head back to the day room. His stomach was starting to complain.

***Sorry it took so long to post this chapter. I have been very busy. This is one of the last opportunities to tell me what you would like to see covered before I end this story. I am planning to write a sequel that will begin with how things are a few months down the line from here (which in fiction land means around the holiday season) so some things may resurface then but if there is anything you feel absolutely ought to be addressed here, let me know now, please. Thanks for the feedback. -Hotflash.**


	32. Chapter 32

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 32**

As soon as Bert Dwyer was in uniform and settled in the station, Johnny was out the door. He had a very busy day scheduled with Sharon. He drove home quickly making only one stop at the supermarket to pick up some flowers.

Once he arrived at the house, he unlocked the door and slipped in quietly. He wanted to surprise Sharon. Johnny made a quick search of the house and discovered that Sharon was still in the shower. He left the master bedroom and headed for the kitchen. He took the flowers he had brought for her out of the cellophane they were wrapped in and placed them in a vase with water. He set them in the middle of the dining table and arranged the flowers until he was happy with the way they looked.

With the flowers in place, Johnny washed his hands and pulled his sleeves up before rummaging through the refrigerator. He pulled out a dozen eggs, the milk, and cheese. He browsed the cupboard to find cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla. As he mixed the egg batter for French toast he noticed the shower had gone silent. Good. Breakfast should be ready about the time she was.

Johnny proceeded to make the French toast and he scrambled some eggs, sprinkling them with grated cheddar cheese. He held the food warm in the oven while he waited for Sharon. He made some orange juice and found a can of peaches to add to the meal. He opened them and put them in a bowl on the table. He had just started setting the table when Sharon emerged from the bedroom.

"Good morning Johnny," said Sharon as she walked into the kitchen. Sorry I'm running behind again." She went directly to him and hugged him before they shared a tender kiss.

"Forgiven," he stated. "Sit down, breakfast is ready." Johnny held the chair for her.

"It smells delicious," she said, pouring herself a glass of orange juice. She could smell the light scent from the floral bouquet and looked up at them. "Johnny, those flowers are beautiful!"

"So are you," he said smiling his famous crooked smile.

Johnny put the food on the table and poured them each a cup of coffee, setting it down at their places before taking his seat. "We have a lot to do today." Johnny said. "After breakfast we need to go get our marriage license. We have to do some shopping because there are things you and Becca will need. What time do we meet with the lawyer?"

"Eleven thirty," said Sharon.

"Okay, and what time did you tell Tania we'd meet her?"

"Three o'clock. I wanted Amber to be home. This is going to be hard for her."

"Yeah, I know. It will be hard for Tania and Becca too, especially Becca. Her aunt has been like her mom and her mom like an aunt. Everything is going to change in her little world."

"I know. I hope this isn't too hard on her," Sharon worried.

"She'll be all right. Kids are very adaptable," said Johnny.

Sharon and Johnny continued verbally organizing their errands as they finished their breakfast, then hurried out for their busy, long day.

When Sam pulled into her driveway after leaving the station, Mike was right behind her. It wasn't much farther to his own place but he stopped at hers anyway. He got out of his truck and caught up with her on the porch. Sam got the door unlocked but she didn't open it right away. She turned to face Mike instead. She looked into his eyes and tried to read them. "Mike, what is it?"

Mike smiled at her. He bent down and kissed her softly. "What do you have planned today?"

"I promised Miss Millie I'd get some housework done. That should take a couple of hours. Then, nothing."

"I'll make you a deal."

"What kind of deal?" Sam asked. "You work inside and I'll work outside. The lawn looks like it could use a good mowing and I see there are weeds in the flowerbeds. I can take care of that and some trimming."

"What's in it for you?" Sam asked.

"Well for starters, how about some coffee, and later when I've been working a while, how about some lemonade?"

"Is that all?"

"Nope."

"What else then?" Sam asked

"When we're all through I get to kidnap you for the afternoon," Mike answered.

"And do what?"

"Whatever we want. After we talk. I talked to Roy yesterday. I told him how we feel about each other."

"Mike, I told you, Roy is not my dad! I don't need him to approve of what I do or don't do." Sam was on the defensive side again.

"Sam, I told you how I felt about that. I _had_ to talk to him. And it went _well_. We can talk about it when we are finished here. Somewhere comfortable and private." He spoke softly and with his hand on her arm to try and calm her.

Sam softened. "Okay, you _did_ tell me how you felt. I'm sorry. Come in and we'll start with the coffee. Miss Millie will be happy to see you."

Mike put his arm around Sam and gave her a squeeze. "Thank you." Then the two walked into the house. Sam got Mike seated at the table then excused herself to put away her duffel and let Miss Millie know they had company. The two women walked into the kitchen together.

"Well, hello young man, back so soon?" Miss Millie kidded with Mike.

"I heard there was good coffee," said Mike as he stood up. "I'm a sucker for good coffee and beautiful women and the two of you fit that bill perfectly."

"Oh Sammy," said Miss Millie looking at Sam. "This one's a real smooth talker. You had better watch yourself." Smiling she walked over to Mike and gave him a pat on the shoulder. "I'm glad you've come to visit again."

"My pleasure Miss Millie. I thought if you don't mind, that I'd do some yard work for you."

"Oh, aren't you a dear? I'm afraid I don't have much in the way of tools. I usually pay someone to do it and they bring their own tools."

"That's not a problem. I live close and I have a truck. I can get my tools for the job. And, as long as Sam's around here, if you like I can help out about twice a month," Mike offered.

"Oh, you don't have to do that. It's a lot of work and I am sure you're busy with the fire department and everything else you're into." Miss Millie was very surprised at Mike's generous offer. She didn't want to take advantage of him unfairly.

"Miss Millie, I have plenty of time to help out and besides, I like yard work." Mike didn't' want to convince her to do something she didn't want to but he figured she could use the money she would have spent on lawn care to some better use. If he could help out, he would. Miss Millie was very good to Sam and that made her special in his book. Besides, she reminded him of his own grandma whom he missed very much.

"Okay, but what do I get to do for you?"

"Fresh hot coffee and cold lemonade when appropriate are all I'm asking for. And the opportunity to kidnap Sam, when she's willing."

Miss Millie smiled broadly. "Well Sam," she said. "I think maybe you should keep him."

"I just might," she said back, hugging Mike.

Roy arrived home that morning to find Joanne frowning, staring at her side profile in the floor length mirror on the wall just outside the bathroom door. Her hands were gliding over her somewhat enlarged abdomen. He walked up behind her and slid his arms around her waist, caressing her belly gently. "You're not fat, Annie. You're beautiful," he crooned softly in her ear as he read her mind.

Joanne turned around in his arms and put her arms around his waist. "I can't button my pants."

Roy tilted her chin up so he could look at her face. "That just means you've earned a shopping trip. How are you feeling this morning?"

"I feel okay. I'm just blue, I guess."

"Well, I know how to _fix_ that." Roy smiled and scooped her up off the floor carrying her to their room. He set her gently on the bed then leaned down and kissed her as he joined her there. At first Joanne's body didn't respond even though she wanted to return his affection, but once Roy's warm hands began to caress her stomach as he kissed her neck and moved downward towards her chest, she felt her body flood with warmth and desire for her husband.

Roy was gentle but passionate and attentive to her needs. They stretched their intimate moments into an hour and half of passion, closeness and cuddling before both drifting off to sleep in each other's arms. Joanne awoke a few hours later with an urgent need to get up. Her husband was sleeping soundly with his arms still around her. Carefully and gently she managed to extricate herself from him and slipped off to take care of urgent matters. Once she was through she came back to check on Roy and pulled is covers up sort of tucking him in. He would be out until the kids got home from school, which was common the day he returned from a shift. She slipped into some comfortable clothing; one of Roy's dress shirts and a pair of jeans that she could not fasten. It didn't matter; the tail of Roy's shirt covered her.

Joanne walked out to the kitchen to thaw something for dinner. She made herself a cup of tea and sat down with it at the couch. She sat there quietly with the teacup warming her hands and thought of her husband and how thoughtful he was. He always seemed to know when she needed a lift. He had made her feel beautiful and sexy when all she had been feeling was frustrated and fat. He was right. She would need a shopping trip and soon. She reached up for the phone on the end table and called her friend Susan.

The phone rang three times before Susan picked up. "Hello?"

"Hi Susan. It's Joanne."

"Jo, how are you? I know you haven't been feeling so well lately. Are you feeling any better yet?" Susan was concerned for her best friend.

"Well, Sue… I'm not sick."

There was a pause on the other end of the conversation. Jo let it ride. Finally Susan spoke. "Joanne, what are you trying to say?" she asked, guessing at the answer.

"I'm pregnant. And my clothes don't fit."

"Oh! I know, let's go shopping! When can you get away?"

"Roy's sleeping right n…" Joanne started. Susan didn't let her finish.

"Perfect. I'll leave in 10 minutes and be over to get you." Susan wouldn't take no for an answer and Joanne both knew it and had been counting on it.

"Okay, see you soon. Bye." Joanne hung up the phone. She got up and fixed a sandwich for Roy, wrapping it and putting it in the refrigerator. She wrote him a note telling him where she was and got her jacket and purse out of the closet just in time to hear a soft knock at the door. When she opened it, Susan threw her arms around her and gave her a big hug.

"Oh, Joanne! I am so happy for you. Is Roy happy?"

Joanne smiled. "He does seem very happy. I really lucked out with him, didn't I?"

"Yeah, I think you did," Susan answered taking Joanne by the arm and leading her to the car.

Johnny and Sharon arrived at her Aunt Tania's house at ten to three. Sharon was feeling a little nervous about talking to her aunt about their plans. Johnny could read in her expression the discomfort that Sharon felt.

"Hey, don't worry. Everything is gonna be fine," Johnny tried to encourage her.

She looked at him, doubt showing in her eyes. "What if she decides she won't give Becca up? What if she goes for permanent custody?"

"Sharon, why on Earth would she do that?" Johnny asked her. "I know I've barely met her, but she doesn't strike me as the type…"

"Johnny, she loves Becca. She's raised her, not me. And she can't have any more children." Sharon expressed each of her reasons for a concern that she knew was irrational.

"Baby, she's not gonna keep Becca from her mother. Stop worrying and let's just go talk to her, okay? It's gonna be just fine." He leaned over and kissed her warmly. The distraction calmed Sharon's nerves a bit and when they were through she was ready to face her aunt and cousin.

As they waited for Tania to answer the door, Amber came walking up onto the porch from behind them having come from her bus stop a block away. She was surprised to see the couple standing on the porch.

"Hi Sharon, hi Mr. Gage," she said. "Are you here to see Becca?" Amber didn't know that Tania had been expecting them so that the four of them could talk. Before Sharon could answer, Tania opened the door and ushered them in.

"Come in Sharon," she said giving her niece a hug on her way through the doorway. "Welcome Mr. Gage." She smiled at him. "Please come in and sit down." She led them to the living room. She had prepared lemonade and set full glasses of it next to four seats on end tables and the coffee table. On the middle of the coffee table was a tray of different types of sliced cheese and some crackers, a mound of grapes in the middle of the tray. Next to the tray was a small stack of paper plates and some napkins. She pointed out the lemonades and invited them to partake of snacks while they talked.

The four of them spent a few minutes making very small talk while they all dished out platefuls of the snacks that had been provided. When everyone was settled into their chairs with full plates Tania started the conversation. She started by addressing Amber whose mind was racing with ideas about what this obviously planned meeting was to be about.

"Amber, honey, Sharon and Mr. Gage…" she started

"Johnny, please." Johnny requested.

Tania nodded and smiled. "Sharon and Johnny came here today to talk to us. They have some news for us apparently and some things they wish to discuss."

Amber looked horrified and pale. "You're gonna take her aren't you?" It came out like an accusation. She knew Sharon was Becca's mother, but it didn't matter. Becca had always lived with her aunt and cousin and Amber saw no need to change that now.

"Amber!" scolded Tania. "Now you and I have already talked about this. Right now let's just listen to what they have to say."

Amber looked from one to the other adult in the room but didn't say anything. Sharon was next to speak, breaking the uncomfortable silence. She looked Amber in the eye. "Amber, I know you love Becca like a sister. You and your mom do a wonderful job taking care of her and I am very grateful for that. Thank you." She waited to see if Amber would respond.

"You're welcome," she said weakly. "I do love her, but you are here to take her aren't you?"

Sharon looked at Johnny then back to Amber. "Well, let's start at the beginning, shall we?" She sighed and then started in. "When we went to the zoo and I brought Johnny, it was because Johnny and I are serious about each other and I wanted him to meet Becca. I thought they hit it off pretty well, didn't you?"

Amber shrugged in response while Tania nodded her head affirmatively.

"Well, Johnny and I have been dating for a while now, and… we love each other very much." Both Amber and Tania looked Johnny's direction and he gave a slight nod of his head to confirm that he agreed with Sharon's statement.

Sharon continued. "Johnny has asked me to marry him and I said yes. With the added support that he will provide, I will finally be able to bring my daughter home."

Tania smiled a sad smile and looked down toward the floor. She was happy for Sharon and had prayed for the day to come when she would be able to care for her daughter. She was sad too though. She had been so happy to take Becca in. She herself could no longer bear children and she still had the passion for mothering in her. But she knew this day was coming and suspected during the zoo trip that it would be sooner than later.

Amber's response was silent. Giant silent tears slowly dripped from her eyes and rolled down her cheeks. She didn't say anything. She knew Becca should be with her own mom but that didn't change the way she felt inside and how she wanted to keep Becca here, with her and her mom.

Johnny spoke next. "I have a house that is big enough for us. Becca has a room that we are in the process of setting up. We bought furniture today for it. But I have enough room there that you can visit any time you like and even stay over. You both are important to us and especially to Becca. We want you involved in her life."

"And, Johnny works crazy hours. He works 24 hour shifts every third day and sometimes more if he has to trade days or work overtime for someone who is off. My shifts rotate too, at the hospital. So sometimes we will still need care for Becca. We hoped that maybe we could bring her here for the times when we both have to work."

"Of course." Tania said. But how soon did you plan on bringing her home to your place?"

"As soon as possible, I've already missed so much in her little life." Answered Sharon.

"I know you have. I know that's hard for you, but we have to think about how hard this is going to be for Becca too."

"What are you saying?" asked Sharon, fearing that Tania would fight her over taking Becca home.

"I'm saying we need to consider a transition period and how to ease her into a new home and a new life." Tania answered. "Sharon, I don't want to keep Becca from you. I just don't think packing her up and moving her out all at once is a good idea."

"I think you're right," said Johnny. "A transitional period would be better for Becca." He looked at Sharon to see how she would respond to his agreement with Tania. She had a blank look on her face, much like the one on Amber's face.

"How would that work?" asked Amber.

"That depends on what we decide," said Johnny. "We should talk about ideas for that. Does anyone want to start?"

"We could try sending Becca just for weekends," suggested Tania.

"We could," said Johnny. "But the problem is that our work schedules don't fit into weekends and weekdays. That could be a lot of hits and misses."

"Oh, that's right. I forgot about that already." Tania said.

"Maybe we could alternate days," said Amber.

"That's a lot of transitions back and forth. It might be too much." Tania replied.

"What if Johnny and I take her and bring her back here the night before a shift that we won't be home. That will give her the evening to transition and then she'll sleep here and wake up here, have the day with you and sleep here again. Then we'll come have breakfast together and take her home afterwards."

"She'd get some bonding time with us that way, and continue bonding with you both and share the interaction between all of us on a regular basis too." Johnny was thinking aloud.

"That just might work." Said Tania. "And that would ensure Amber got time with her too, since she's in school and isn't home most of the day. Evenings are good for her."

"What do you think of that, Amber?" asked Sharon, noticing that she was staying quiet.

"I… I guess we could… try it." She said. Agreeing on a plan made this whole change a reality and she was having a hard time swallowing it.

"Amber, if we have her on a weekend or on a break from school, you're welcome to come to our place and stay with us so you can have more time with Becca." Johnny offered.

"Absolutely." Sharon added. "I know you think of Becca like a sister."

"Thank you Johnny… Sharon. I'd like that a lot if it's okay with Mom." She looked toward her mother for approval.

"Of course, honey. Any time you want to. But…" she looked at Sharon and Johnny. "I do have one request."

"What's that?" asked Sharon.

"I still want to have our play dates at the zoo regularly, and other fun places too."

The four of them laughed with relief that they were able to come to some agreement. "Of course!" Sharon agreed eagerly.

"Aaaammmmbaaah" a small voice could be heard hollering.

"Becca's awake from her nap!" Amber said, jumping up. "I better go get her." Amber always got her up from her afternoon naps because she always woke up soon after Amber got home from school.

When she left the room to get Becca, Tania looked at Sharon and Johnny. "Congratulations on your engagement. When is the big day?"

Johnny and Sharon looked at each other and both turned a little red. Finally Sharon answered. "Four days from now." She said it very quietly.

"_Four days?" _asked Tania, shocked.

"Well, I don't want to disrespect Sharon. We wanted to be married soon because I've been moving Sharon in with me. I'm sleeping on the couch until we make it official, and well, let's just say it beats not sleeping at all… barely." Johnny chuckled.

"But that's no time to plan a wedding. Your invitations should have been out at least a month ago."

"No Aunt Tania. We're just having a small ceremony with the Fire Department Chaplain officiating. We might have a big wedding ceremony some time later, but right now, I just want to do this."

Amber and Becca walked in on the end of that sentence. "When are you getting married?" asked Amber.

"Mama!" Becca saw Sharon and ran over to her, climbing in her lap.

"In four days, at the station. I hope you can come." Sharon answered as she hugged her little girl. "How's my baby?" she smiled at the little girl on her lap. Becca didn't answer, she just snuggled in to her mother's arms. She was still sleepy around the edges.

"That's Friday. I have school." Answered Amber.''

"I doubt seriously that will be a problem. I'll write you a note for school." Said her mother. "What time?"

"We're still working out the details," said Johnny. "The Chaplain is supposed to get back to us tomorrow."

"Well, let me know as early as possible, please." Tania requested.

Sharon changed the subject. "Aunt Tania?"

"Hmmm?"

"I'd like to start our little plan now… tonight.

Tania sighed heavily. She knew it would start somewhere. She slowly nodded approval. "How should we refer to Johnny with Becca?" she asked. "Have you given that any thought?"

"Yes," said Sharon. "Daddy. Johnny is going to adopt her."

Johnny's smile took over his whole face when the word "Daddy" was mentioned and he looked proud sitting there, gazing at the little girl who was soon to be his daughter, snuggling with the woman who was soon to be his wife.

***Almost wrapped up. Thanks for continuing to read and comment. You are all awesome! Hotflash**


	33. Chapter 33

**Everything Changes**

**Chapter 33**

Joanne DeSoto, her friend Susan, Emily Stanley, and Dixie McCall arrived at Station 51 at 5:30 in the morning, much to the chagrin of C-shift Captain Benjamin Burns and his men who had been out fighting an apartment fire most of the night. Captain Stanley had, at Emily's urging, called Chief Hauts, explained about Johnny and Sharon getting married and had gotten permission to hold the ceremony at the station. Coverage was arranged for 51's to stand down between 8 and 10 a.m. but then Johnny would remain on duty after the ceremony and the station had to return to business as usual.

The ladies wanted to be sure everything was perfect for their friends when they were joined in Holy matrimony at the station later that morning. Because all the men of C-shift respected their A shift brother, all tried not to grumble as they cleaned their equipment, loaded fresh hoses onto Big Red and cleaned up after themselves instead of getting a few hours of much deserved and needed sleep. The ladies gladly pitched in to help them so that once the station was in working order again they could decorate at least a little.

Hank Stanley wasn't far behind the ladies in arriving to the station. He stopped and picked up donuts on his way in. He wanted to treat C-shift, knowing that they would be intruded upon well before the morning tones would have sounded. He made sure he bought plenty. One couldn't bring donuts at the end of a shift and expect that the next shift wouldn't dive in too. The last several days had been somewhat of a blur with the private memorial for Dave Martin being held at the station, followed by the public memorial at St. Francis which brought firefighters and police officers from all over the state and even across the country to pay their respects to a fallen hero.

JJ and Billy, tired and scruffy looking, stumbled into the day room in search of coffee. Joanne greeted them warmly and offered them each a cup.

"Thanks Mrs. DeSoto," said Billy. JJ nodded his thanks and smiled.

"Joanne! And you're welcome. Are you subbing in Billy?"

"Billy's my new partner, he just transferred in." JJ answered for him.

"Well, then welcome back to Station 51," said Joanne, smiling. She liked Billy and she knew Roy thought a lot of him too.

"Thanks. It's good to be back. It always felt like home here."

Joanne focused her attention on JJ. "How are _you_ doing JJ?"

"I'm okay. It's been a rough road recently, but over all, I am doing just fine."

"That's good to hear. We've been praying for you."

"I appreciate that," answered JJ.

Susan walked in obviously looking for something… or someone. "There you are. I sent you for coffee and you went AWOL on me!" She kidded her friend.

"Sorry…" Joanne started.

"It was our fault." Billy took the blame.

"Yeah, we engaged her in conversation and sidetracked her." JJ joined in.

"For that, you get put to work." Susan smiled sweetly at them. Then she put them to work making breakfast. "After the ceremony, we'll have quiche. We can't have a wedding and no reception at all."

JJ looked terrified at what he was being asked to do. "But… I can't cook. I burn water!" He protested.

"Fine. Billy can cook. You can prep." Susan directed.

It was an easy recipe. It wasn't really quiche, but almost as good. It was made with an egg mixture, half and half, broccoli, bacon, onions, mushrooms, cheese and Bisquick. All they had to do was wash and cut up the veggies, chop and cook the bacon then mix everything together and bake it. The ladies had brought fruit trays to serve along with it. Billy was a bachelor and quite comfortable in the kitchen so he took over directing, leaving Susan and Joanne to take care of "wedding stuff."

When Sharon arrived at 6:30, Emily was sweet-talking Captain Burns into vacating his office for the remainder of his shift so that Sharon could use it as a changing room to get ready for the wedding. Captain Burns protested loudly but gave in easily as he stepped out to supervise the moving of the engine and squad to the apron and help set up the rented folding chairs. Sharon was ushered right in and Joanne immediately set up her "salon station" and plugged in the hot rollers. While they heated, Emily and Joanne worked together to do Sharon's makeup. When Tania arrived she joined Joanne and Sharon to help get her ready. Joanne was so excited for Sharon and Johnny that she kept asking Sharon questions about Becca and their plans and every time Sharon tried to answer Joanne would shush her.

"Stop talking, you're moving your face. It's hard to put your make up on you when you're moving!"

"Then stop asking her questions!" Tania laughed. Joanne saw how silly the situation was and laughed, but pretty soon she was right back at it, asking questions then shushing Sharon again when she'd try to answer.

At 8:00 there was a knock on the door. Joanne went to see who it was. Roy stood at the door smiling looking quite handsome in his class A dress uniform.

"Annie, the Chaplain is here. The guys are in dress uniforms, all three shifts! Johnny is looking very nervous. The guests are seated on the folding chairs and everything seems to be going as planned, as far as I can tell."

"Thanks Roy." Joanne looked at the clock on the wall. "We have thirty minutes. Will you get Susan in here to help us with Sharon? She isn't in her dress yet."

Roy rolled his eyes. "Right. I'm on it." He scrambled off to find Susan. He found her in the kitchen giving Billy last minute instructions. He had somehow gotten shanghaied, along with JJ to serve the food after they had prepared it.

"Susan, Joanne says she needs you right away. Sharon isn't in her dress yet," Roy informed her.

Susan's eyes went wide as she glanced at the clock. "Oh my Goodness! Out of my way," she said, running past Roy to the captain's office. She knocked and quickly went in, closing the door behind her.

As soon as the three ladies had gotten Sharon into her wedding dress, Tania announced they had to do something very important. She gathered the four of them into a small huddle and asked them to hold hands in a circle.

"Sharon, you might be my niece, but I'll always think of you as a daughter. I am so happy for you and Becca to have found Johnny. I know you will be happy together. I think it is important to start this marriage off right. I would like to pray for you now."

Sharon smiled and nodded her consent and the four women bowed their heads as Tania led the prayer. "Dear Lord, we come together in unity to thank you for Sharon and Becca and Johnny, whom you are about to join together as a family. We pray, Father that you would be Lord over this family, that you would bless them and bind them together with ties that can never be broken. We pray that you would be ever present in their lives, protecting them, guiding them and directing their paths in all things. Please bless this marriage… Bless this family, with the fruits of the Spirit, Father. May their love for one another be a reflection of your love for your children and an example for those who have not yet come to know you. Thank you, precious Lord. In Jesus' name, Amen." The women squeezed hands at the end of the prayer before letting go then all eyes were on Sharon.

"Thank you, Aunt Tania." She was moved almost beyond words.

"You're welcome Sweetie," she answered, hugging her niece. "There is one last thing we need to do before you head out there." She went to her purse and took out a small cardboard jewelry box. She opened it and took out a pair of earrings. They were diamond cut sapphires surrounded by smaller diamonds around the perimeter, set in 14 karat gold. "This is something old. They were your great grandmother's. Now they are yours." She handed the earrings to Sharon. Sharon fought the tears that were welling up in her eyes as she put the earrings on. They were beautiful and went well with the locket around her neck.

"Now you need something new." Tania again went to her purse and produced a garter, which she helped Sharon slide up her leg and into place. "I also have something borrowed for you." She took another item out of her purse and handed it to Sharon. It was a small white handkerchief with lace edging. This is Amber's. She used to carry it in her little purse for fancy occasions when she was a small child."

Sharon again had to fight the tears. Joanne could see it in her expression. "Don't cry, Sharon. You'll run your mascara."

Tania hugged Sharon and told her, "Now, the last thing. Something blue." She walked over to Cap's desk where there was a small cooler set on top. She opened it and pulled out a bridal bouquet. It was made up of white roses, pale pink roses and pale yellow roses and around it was a sapphire blue velvet ribbon. "Amber put this together for you with roses from our yard."

"It's so beautiful!" Sharon exclaimed.

The other ladies agreed as they admired it. Then the three of them each gave Sharon a warm hug.

"Are you ready?" asked Susan. It was 8:25 and there was a knock on the door again. Susan crossed the room to open it. Standing outside the door was Doctor Kelley Brackett in a suit and tie, a smile on his face.

"Is she ready?" he asked Susan.

"As ready as she's going to be," she said, stepping aside so he could see. Joanne led Sharon toward the door.

Kel looked her up and down. Her soft red hair hung down in soft, loose curls, cascading over her shoulders and framing her face. Around her neck was the gold chain and locket that Johnny had given her, resting comfortably just above the center of her cleavage showing from the beaded princess neckline of her dress. The bodice was beaded in intricate designs with pearls and the sleeves were puffed from shoulder to elbow with bare arms below that. The skirt was full and floor length trimmed with more pearls at the hem and along the edge of her moderate train that hung down beneath a large bow in the back of her dress.

"You're the prettiest pom-pom girl I ever saw," commented Kel as he held out his arm to escort her. She stepped over to him smiling and held out her arm to accept his escort when Joanne stopped her.

"Wait, your veil!" She picked it up off the desk and brought it to her, helping situate the pearly beaded headpiece on her head properly. The veil hung down just below her shoulders and Tania quickly fussed with it until she was happy that it looked just right. Now the bride was ready.

Sharon and Dr. Brackett stood in the walkway waiting for the signal to walk out. In front of them were Amber with Becca, who was carrying a small basket of flower petals. Tania, Susan and Joanne scooted past the bride and her escort and past the girls to go take their seats. Tania kissed Sharon on the cheek as she passed by her. "I love you," she smiled and joined the others.

Mike Stoker stood in a corner with his keyboard watching to make sure everyone was ready. The chaplain gave him a nod. The music started and Amber escorted Becca down the aisle through the apparatus bay to the other side where the chaplain stood and where, Roy by his side, Johnny was waiting and watching for his bride. Becca toddled along, oblivious of the significance of this day, but enjoying throwing the small flower petals on the ground as Amber was directing her to do. When they got to the end of the aisle, Tania took Becca from Amber and sat back down. Amber stood and waited for Sharon.

The music changed and the wedding march began. Slowly, Dr. Brackett walked Sharon down the aisle into the presence of friends and family. When they reached the other end of the aisle, he kissed her on the cheek through her veil and gave her a quick hug before finding a seat next to slightly teary eyed, Dixie McCall.

Amber helped Sharon get the train of her dress situated and then the chaplain began. He offered a few words about the seriousness of the vows they were about to take and the history of marriage and read from the Bible. Then he said,

"Let us now thank the Lord for the love that has bound your hearts and lives together in the spiritual fellowship of marriage that you are about to enter into."

He offered a prayer and when he was through speaking it, he turned to Roy who handed him the two rings. He handed Johnny Sharon's ring and directed him to begin reciting the vows that Johnny had worked so hard to memorize.

"Before our friends and those so special to us here, on this wonderful day of gladness and good fortune, I humbly give you my hand and my heart as a sanctuary of warmth and peace, and pledge my faith and love to you. Just as this circle is without end, my love for you is eternal. My commitment to you will never fail. As we enter upon the privileges and joys of life's most holy relationship, and begin together the great adventure of life, I will love you in sickness as in health, in poverty as in wealth, in sorrow as in joy, and will be true to you, so long as we both shall live. I, Johnny, take you, Sharon, to be my wife. With this ring, I thee wed."

He had barely gotten through it. The emotion inside of him was so great. He loved her deeply and still found it hard to believe that this was real.

Johnny slipped the ring onto Sharon's finger and through the veil he saw a tear slide down her cheek even as his own eyes pooled.

The chaplain handed Sharon Johnny's ring and she repeated the vows Johnny had said to her, finishing with, "I, Sharon, take you, Johnny to be my husband. With this ring, I thee wed."

The chaplain spoke again.

John and Sharon, I now pronounce you husband and wife. What God has joined together, let no man put asunder. You may kiss your bride."

Johnny lifted Sharon's veil and gazed into her tear-filled eyes a moment then leaned in and the two shared a long romantic kiss in front of all of their closest friends and their family.

When they stopped the chaplain addressed the small crowd. "Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you, Mr. And Mrs. John Gage."

**THE END**

***Watch for the sequel, coming soon. I promise Becca's adoption and baby DeSoto will be part of it and of course more with Sam and Mike. Thank you all so very much for reading this story and for all the wonderful comments you have left me in the feedback forum. Thanks to those who kindly pointed out mistakes and helped me so much with this story. It has been a pleasure to share it with you. Merry Christmas every one! -Hotflash**


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